- Leclerc apologises to Antonelli for calling him “so bad” on team radio.
- Rivalry traces back to two costly collisions during Antonelli’s rookie season.
- Track limits penalty added to Antonelli’s frustrating Miami Sprint afternoon.
Charles Leclerc publicly apologised to Kimi Antonelli on Saturday after a heated team radio message during the Miami GP Sprint drew swift criticism from fans.
The Ferrari driver had accused the 19-year-old Mercedes driver of moving under braking during their early battle, and the remarks were broadcast live to millions of viewers.
Leclerc finished third in the 19-lap Sprint at the Miami International Autodrome, behind race winner Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.
Antonelli, who had started second on the grid, lost two places off the line and fought his way back aggressively through the opening laps.
As the two drivers scrapped wheel-to-wheel, Leclerc told race engineer Bryan Bozzi:
“Kimi is.. so bad on wheel-to-wheel. He moved under braking, it’s unbelievable. We’re going to crash.”
The message went out on the world feed without delay.
Leclerc: ‘I don’t necessarily think what I said’
Leclerc addressed the outburst in two separate settings after the race.
He first raised the subject at his press conference, then went further in a post-race interview with Sky Italia, with his comments later shared on X.
“Before anything else, I’d like to apologise for the comments I made about Kimi, that were a bit aggressive in the beginning of the race,” he said. “I don’t necessarily think what I said.”
He added that Antonelli’s status as the only Italian driver on the grid made the incident sit particularly uncomfortably with him.
“If there’s a driver I wouldn’t like to have this with, it’s the only Italian on the grid,” he said. “I hope this can get better in the future.”
When the presenter suggested that Italy was not divided by the incident, Leclerc was clear that his apology was personal.
“This is more for Kimi in the sense that I’m sorry I said that,” he replied.
At the earlier press conference, Leclerc had already started to walk back his words, though some frustration still came through.
“I was being a bit harsh, maybe, with the adrenaline inside the car,” he said, per PlanetF1.
He described their on-track battles as “sometimes a little bit too close for comfort and not really needed as well,” and added: “I really like Kimi also as a person.”
A rivalry with baggage
The two drivers have a history that helps explain why Leclerc’s patience broke in Miami.
At the 2025 Dutch Grand Prix, Antonelli attempted a pass on Leclerc at the banked Hugenholtzbocht corner. His front-right tyre clipped Leclerc’s rear-left, sending the Ferrari spinning into the barrier.
Antonelli received a 10-second penalty and later visited the Ferrari motorhome to apologise in person.
Later that season in Sao Paulo, a three-car incident on a safety car restart saw Piastri lock up and hit Antonelli, who was then pushed into Leclerc, tearing off the Ferrari’s front-left tyre.
Piastri was penalised, but Leclerc argued the blame was “a bit more of a 50-50 with Kimi and Oscar.”
Each incident added weight to the next. By the time Antonelli came charging through in Miami, Leclerc was already carrying two races’ worth of grievance into the fight.
A difficult day for Antonelli
The Sprint brought Antonelli little joy beyond the battle with Leclerc.
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff confirmed after the race that Antonelli’s poor start was “not at all Kimi’s fault but was an issue on our side.”
The getaway was part of a troubling pattern. Antonelli has now lost 20 positions at race starts across the opening three grands prix and two sprints of the 2026 season.
The Italian was candid about his performance once the car was away.
“The grip was very low, probably lower than we expected, and then after that I was really frustrated, I didn’t even drive well, I did a lot of mistakes,” he said, per Formula 1.
His afternoon worsened after the chequered flag. A post-race five-second penalty for exceeding track limits dropped him from fourth to sixth.
Former world champion Jenson Button was direct in his appraisal.
“The track limits breach, that’s just… I don’t want to say a silly mistake, but it is, really,” Button said, per Motorsport.com. “It was an easy fourth position for him, and he’s just lost three points to his biggest title rival.”
The penalty cut Antonelli’s championship lead over team-mate George Russell from nine points to seven. Leclerc sits third in the standings on 55 points, 20 behind Antonelli.
Looking ahead
Antonelli’s afternoon in the Sprint did little to dent his broader form. He claimed his third consecutive pole position in qualifying later on Saturday, this time for Sunday’s grand prix.
He remains the youngest championship leader in Formula 1 history, with two wins and two pole positions from the opening three rounds.
Leclerc, meanwhile, saw enough in Ferrari’s pace to remain optimistic.
“The pace was there. It was very difficult to follow in the second sector, but we were quite competitive,” he said.
The apology offered a cleaner ending to a tense afternoon. Leclerc clearly reached his limit with the recurring close calls, but he also knew that venting on team radio was not the right way to handle it.
Whether the two drivers find a cleaner way to race each other is an open question.
