Kimi Antonelli reveals how he is staying grounded in 2026 F1 title fight

Agosto 31, 2026 lojamais44@gmail.com

Current Formula 1 championship leader Kimi Antonelli has opened up about how he is keeping himself grounded in the 2026 title fight.

In only his second season in F1, Antonelli became the youngest driver to lead the standings with back-to-back wins in China and Japan. Since then, he secured four more grand prix victories before the summer break and now finds himself thrown into the championship fight early in his career.

The 20-year-old driver currently holds a 59-point lead in the championship over his Mercedes team-mate George Russell and Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton.

“We watched some of the races on TV while eating dinner. We still talked about F1, but it was in a nice way, just reminding us what we achieved,” Antonelli told F1.com about his summer break.

“You need to be happy about it, but at the same time not get carried away from it and still maintain focus. The job is not done yet. We’re only halfway through and there is still so much that needs to happen and so much to be achieved.”

Tennis star Roger Federer attends the Pirelli Hot Laps event

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

The Italian driver also shared advice from tennis legend Roger Federer to “always be yourself and be able to enjoy it as well”, which he credits with helping him become more relaxed in his approach.

“When you understand that you also have to enjoy it as well, it makes the difference, because it helps you to, I feel like at least in my case, drive more relaxed, enjoy the driving more, feel more the car, and then the performance just comes much easier,” Antonelli continued.

“Instead of when you’re chasing it, and you’re driving tense, it’s a big difference. But of course, trying to be yourself and always focusing on the goal and always also try to see the positive, even in the bad situations. Even when something goes bad, there’s always a positive. That can be found, and that can help you to grow.”