Antonelli leads Formula 1 and seeks advice from Federer ahead of Belgian GP

Meeting with Federer at Wimbledon

Before the race, Antonelli sought an exchange with another sporting great. At Wimbledon, the Italian teenager and the Swiss tennis legend recently sat next to each other in the Royal Box. "Es war super, mit ihm über alles Mögliche zu sprechen. Er ist nicht nur ein unglaublicher Athlet, sondern auch bescheiden und sehr offen", said Antonelli in Spa-Francorchamps.

Federer had advised him to think only from race to race and to control the emotions that cause mistakes. "Er hat mir gesagt, ich soll nur von Rennen zu Rennen denken und die Emotionen kontrollieren, die Fehler verursachen", the 19-year-old said. Kimi Antonelli listened very carefully as Federer shared these pieces of advice with him.

Antonelli is aware of the strain of the championship battle and the growing attention. "Es gibt natürlich Momente, in denen man nicht erkannt werden möchte, aber das gehört eben auch dazu." And if he keeps winning, he may soon no longer be able to walk the streets unrecognized, not just in Italy.

The technology is also worrying the youngster. "Die Zuverlässigkeit ist nicht unsere Stärke, daran müssen wir arbeiten", Antonelli said ahead of the championship round. He would give his second season so far a rating of 8.5 out of 10, said the buddy of tennis ace Jannik Sinner.

Verstappen and Leclerc have their say

His championship rival Max Verstappen, who himself was only 17 years old when he debuted in Formula 1, shows understanding for the learning phase: "Es ist normal, dass man im ersten Jahr Fehler macht", said the Dutchman. About Antonelli, the four-time world champion said: "Man konnte schon im Kart sein herausragendes Talent sehen" and "Im Moment macht er einen unglaublichen Job. Er hat einen großen Sprung gehabt."

Verstappen, driving for Red Bull, is only seventh in the standings with 103 points behind and unable to challenge. In addition to his four titles, he has so far also achieved 71 race wins; Antonelli currently stands at five Grand Prix triumphs. Charles Leclerc, who won in England two weeks ago, by contrast sees Mercedes clearly as the favorite: "Mercedes ist immer noch der Favorit", said the Monegasque clearly.

"Uns hat das selbst etwas überrascht", Leclerc said of his first win of the season at a press conference where he sat right next to Antonelli. Nevertheless, the Ferrari driver looks confidently ahead to the weekend: "Unser Auto ist bisher immer schnell, deswegen erwarte ich uns vorn", he said.

Italy hopes for its first champion since 1953

In Italy, hopes are high that Antonelli could become the first Italian Formula 1 world champion in 73 years. In 1953, Alberto Ascari triumphed in a Ferrari; the Tifosi have been waiting for a successor ever since. "Aber die Erwartungen wachsen natürlich auch", said Antonelli.

"Ich muss abliefern und versuchen, das Maximum aus dem herauszuholen, über das ich Kontrolle habe", said Antonelli. The enthusiasm in his home country is great: "Die Begeisterung zu sehen, ist super." With the knowledge from his conversation with Federer behind him, the teenager now wants to attack in Spa-Francorchamps.