Antoneri returned to fourth place after the penalty was cancelled at Albert Park

Andrea Kimi Antonelli was promoted to fourth in his Formula 1 debut at the Australian Grand Prix after Mercedes appealed a five-second penalty for an unsafe release.

Antonelli was initially relegated to the fifth position as a result of a penalty, but reviews and inspections of footage from the roll hoop camera showed that the Italians were not hindering Nico Halkenberg’s Sauber.

Antonelli’s weekend guaranteed he would end up at a high after failing in qualifying at Albert Park and spinning in the opening stint of the race. But the plus far surpassed any negative on a race weekend that even the double world champions mimicked the barrier.

“Some very good drivers hit or hit a wall, and it was easier to not finish than the finish,” Mercedes team boss Totowolf told Sky Sports F1. “He kept him cool and was very impressive to see. As long as the track continues, it shows that he has a good future.”

The error in qualifying for Antonelli, who finished 16th on the grid, is a matter of degree. He wasn’t past the curb of turn 6 like many other drivers, but the combination of strike angle and gravel presence that other cars robed greater freedom has caused damage to the W16 floors. So far, even if the weather has had a favorable Sunday, it will be a significant challenge.

Antonelli was a short Mercedes excursion in 2021 at Red Bull Ring last April, the first excursion that snow concluded the day early, and was facing a second experience driving an F1 car in wet. Therefore, this was his first time in a ground-effective F1 car and in a mid-tyre of the current generation.

The learning curve has all been brought to a sudden state due to the early deployment of safety cars after the spin of Jack Doohan.

“It was very difficult at first,” Antonelli said. “And behind the safety car, there was a lot of tires cooled down, and there was no grip anywhere.

“Also, with all these white lines, it’s very, very tricky, because even at high-speed corners, as soon as you get above them, you suddenly lose your grip.”

Andrea Kimmi Antoneri, Mercedes

Photo: Glenn Dunbar / Motorsport Images

After passing Hulkenberg in 12th place on 15 laps, Antonelli spun and had to do everything again.

“I was lucky enough to spin where it was safe,” he said.

“After a mistake, it hurt a bit of confidence. The team did great things to calm me down and get me back into rhythm and made all the right calls.”

Antoneri then continued the order as others crashed or made false strategy calls in constantly changing conditions. The rookie then glued Alex Albon to the fourth in the final six-lap sprint after the final safety car period.

However, with the checkered flag almost in sight, the team was informed that Antonelli would be given a five-second time penalty for being released into the path of Halkenberg in Pitlan. He didn’t convey this message to the driver, but instead told him to keep pushing to build a gap.

“I can only shake my head,” Wolf said. “It appeared as an incident (on screen), no one saw it – it wasn’t played (on the TV feed) – and after 90 seconds there was a penalty.”

When the five-second penalty was applied, Antonelli fell from fourth to fifth behind Albon again, but the team quickly submitted a petition for “right of examination” to the steward.

An important bar that must be met in these situations is the existence of new evidence that is “important and relevant.” “Not available to parties seeking a review at the time of the relevant decision.”

In addition to footage of the roll hoop, the steward examined footage of the helicopter, concluded that Antonelli did not immediately cross “high-speed lanes” and checked the mirror before doing so. Video inside the car showed no risk to the mechanism standing further down the pit lane. Based on these new factors, the steward reversed the decision and brought Antonelli back to fourth place.

“I’ve learned so much,” Antonelli concluded. “It was obviously a shame yesterday and maybe it was another race, but you never know.

“It was good to experience what happens behind us, but obviously we don’t want to start (back) anymore. It was tricky, and it was very scary, especially with smooth tires, but I’m really pleased with how it went.”

Photos from Australian Grand Prix – Ethnicity