Red Bull has accepted that remarks suggesting Kimi Antonelli let Lando Norris through in Qatar were incorrect and says it regrets the backlash the Mercedes driver has faced. In a statement issued on Monday, the team said that comments made before the end of the race and immediately afterwards about Antonelli’s intentions did not match what later replays showed on TV and in the data.
Late in the race at Lusail, Antonelli was running ahead of Norris after Mercedes gained track position by pitting both cars under an early Safety Car. Norris was on slightly fresher hard tyres and closed to DRS range, while Antonelli tried to defend and also chase Carlos Sainz for a possible podium. With two laps left, Antonelli ran deep, lost the rear briefly and went off line, which allowed Norris to take fourth place and two extra points for his title fight.
On Verstappen’s radio, race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase initially told the reigning champion that it looked like Antonelli had pulled over to let Norris through. Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko also suggested after the race that Antonelli had effectively waved the McLaren past, comments that spread quickly on social media. Antonelli then received a large volume of abusive and threatening messages online, and he removed his profile picture on Instagram in response.
Red Bull’s statement says that replay footage makes clear that Antonelli momentarily lost control of his car, which is why Norris got by. The team added that it “sincerely regrets” that its earlier comments contributed to Antonelli being targeted on social platforms. Marko and Lambiase have both apologised privately, according to reports from the paddock.
Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff strongly rejected the idea that Antonelli had moved aside on purpose. After the race he pointed out that Mercedes is fighting Red Bull for second place in the constructors’ standings and that Antonelli himself was in a direct fight for third place on the podium, so there was no reason to help a rival title contender. Wolff called the claim “nonsense” and said he confronted Lambiase, who told him he had not seen the full incident at the time and was emotional because of the close championship fight.
Wolff later explained that Antonelli had a “moment” at the previous corner, carried less speed into the next turn and then spun up the rear when applying the throttle, which opened the door for Norris. Antonelli gave a similar account in post race interviews, saying that he pushed hard to close on Sainz in dirty air, overheated his tyres and then made a small mistake that cost him fourth. He described the result as frustrating because a podium had seemed possible earlier in the stint.
Despite the minor setback, Mercedes left Qatar still holding second place in the constructors’ standings. After the race the team noted that it has a 33 point advantage over Red Bull heading into the Abu Dhabi finale, with McLaren already confirmed as champions. Wolff said that finishing P2 is important for Mercedes’ record and finances, but he also admitted that the team has not been in a true title fight at any point under the current regulations. Things could change next season, though. Let’s wait and watch.
