Toto Wolff Absolves Antonelli After Miami Sprint Start Glitch

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has publicly defended Kimi Antonelli, absolving the young Italian of any blame following yet another compromised start during the Miami Grand Prix Sprint.

A Fundamental Glitch, Not Driver Error

Earlier in the Miami weekend, Antonelli had alluded to a "fundamental" issue that needed resolving, referencing his previous start struggles in Australia, China, and Japan. This time, the Italian suggested that a Mercedes-related problem was the primary culprit.

"We knew that we were a little bit out of sync with our upgrades, which are coming in Montreal, but we were hoping that we would be able to hold on for now," Wolff explained to Sky Sports F1. "In terms of lap-time, we do, but obviously, if you have such a bad getaway, which was not at all Kimi's fault, it was a glitch on our side, it is difficult."

Antonelli's Frustration and Track Limit Woes

For Antonelli, the Miami Sprint was a race of compounding frustrations. The Italian driver was adamant that his launch procedures were flawless, making the poor getaway even more difficult to swallow.

"We've been doing work over the break, and on my side, for once, I did everything right with the procedures," Antonelli stated. "So we need to check what happened - the grip was very low, lower than we expected, but then after that, I was really frustrated, and I didn't even drive well, I made a lot of mistakes."

The frustration ultimately manifested in driving errors, leading to the costly track limits penalty.

"I got track limits, which is something I need to avoid, but this weekend, it has been more difficult, but it was expected with everyone bringing big upgrades, and now, we've just got to try to maximise the focus on qualifying," he concluded.

With Mercedes awaiting their Montreal upgrade package, the team and Antonelli must now regroup and focus on extracting maximum performance in qualifying to mitigate their ongoing launch vulnerabilities.