- Antonelli targets a future Nurburgring endurance race partnership with Verstappen.
- The Mercedes rookie celebrates making history as F1’s youngest ever pole sitter.
- Antonelli praises mentor Max Verstappen as a guiding “mama duck” for rookies.
Mercedes driver, Kimi Antonelli, expressed his aspirations beyond Formula 1, revealing that he looks forward to collaborating with Max Verstappen to do an endurance race at Nurburgring in the future.
He also opened up about his and Verstappen’s shared passion for GT cars. These comments come ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix, which proved to be a productive and happy weekend for him specifically.
This is because he made history by becoming the youngest ever pole sitter and then went on to become the second youngest driver to win a grand prix.
In just the second year of his career, Antonelli is performing impressively, currently standing second in the drivers’ standings, four points behind the championship leader, George Russell.
Antonelli reveals his Nurburgring dreams
In a conversation with F1, Antonelli said that he looks forward to teaming up with Verstappen for a 24-hour race at Nurburgring. He said, “I would love to do an endurance race with Max together. I think that would be pretty awesome.”
He believes that it will be “fun”, given they both share a mutual interest in GT cars. Moreover, he revealed that his passion for those cars stemmed from his dad’s own GT team.
Explaining how he’s pursuing his GT passion from the sidelines, he said, “Occasionally, I go and test when I can, and obviously, Max, as well, has been really enjoying it. It’s really cool for him to do the 24 Hours of Nurburgring.”
He added that he would be watching Verstappen’s endurance race in May and further expressed his desire to race with him in the series in the future.
He believes that they would make up to be a good team, and it would be a “cool experience.” However, apart from his hopes to race with Verstappen, he shared that he has personally also considered competing in this specific race.
“I’ve already asked for a test at the Nordschleife, for example, because it’s a track that I love, and I would love to be able to try it in the real world as well,” he stated.
Verstappen is like a mama duck to the grid
Fans gifted Verstappen the nickname “mama duck” last year, as he proved to be a mentor to the rookies, often advising them, chatting with them, praising, and being around them.
One of the bonds that has frequently caught fans’ eyes is that of Verstappen and Antonelli, with whom the latter agrees that he shares a wonderful bond.
In conversation with Gazzetta Dello Sport, Antonelli reflected on the bond the Dutchman shares with him and all the young drivers on the grid.
He said, “It’s a great honour. We’ve built a wonderful relationship with him this year, and he’s been a mentor to all of us rookies. I consider him an extraordinary driver, and receiving these compliments from him is special.”
Verstappen would definitely serve as a good guide for Antonelli to fulfill his GT dream due to his impressive experience of trying out different racing endeavours outside F1.
Ahead of his endurance race in May, Verstappen won dominantly in NLS 2, before it was revealed that his team was disqualified due to a tyre blunder.
