Bonnington says stern talk helped Antonelli recover from 2025 struggles

Peter Bonnington says a stern conversation with Kimi Antonelli helped the Italian recover from a difficult spell in his 2025 rookie season. Antonelli secured his first Formula 1 title in 2026, finishing third at the Mexican Grand Prix to clinch the championship.

Speaking to F1 TV after the 2026 Mexico race, the Mercedes race engineer placed the exchange at the end of the European part of Antonelli’s 2025 season. As the calendar moved on to the flyaway races, Bonnington recalled, Antonelli asked why he had not been pushed harder sooner: “Why didn’t you give me a kick up the arse sooner?” Bonnington said Antonelli learned from the bad days and bounced back.

Bonnington also described Antonelli as easy to keep happy and a pleasure to work with. Guiding a driver through the ups and downs, he said, is part of a race engineer’s job alongside looking after the car.

The contrast was stark in 2026: back-to-back wins in China and Japan put Antonelli at the top of the championship after the third round. By the time he clinched the title at the Mexican Grand Prix, he had won nine grands prix in 2026.