KIMI ANTONELLI enjoyed a record-breaking Formula One Japanese Grand Prix after being given the keys for a stunning new car.
However, he is not allowed to drive it on home soil for THREE years thanks to a new law which came into effect last December.
Antonelli, 18, is quietly having an impressive debut season with Mercedes after scoring points in each of his first three races with the Silver Arrows since replacing Lewis Hamilton.
Before his sixth-place finish at Suzuka last Sunday, the Italian was given the keys to a striking dark blue Mercedes AMG GT 63 S, worth £165,000.
He was seen posing alongside the motor – which can go from 0 to 62mph in 2.8 seconds and reach a top speed of 199mph – in pictures released by Gazzetta dello Sport.
But Antonelli, who passed his driving test in January, will not be able to drive it back home due to strict Italian road laws.
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Italian law prevents new drivers from operating internal combustion cars with a power limit over 75kW during their first three years on the road, with his new drive having a limit of up to 600kW.
Despite this, Antonelli does not have to wait long to get back behind the wheel and find the thrill of speed with the Bahrain Grand Prix coming up next weekend.
At 18 years and 224 days, Antonelli’s ten-lap stint leading the Japanese GP saw him become the youngest race leader in F1 history, overtaking Max Verstappen by four days.
After pitting onto hard tyres the Mercedes driver later clocked the fastest lap to also beat Verstappen’s title for the youngest driver to achieve a fastest lap.
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Speaking after the race, won by Verstappen ahead of McLaren pair Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, he said: “I am much happier, it was much better than China, and we showed some good pace and consistency, but the first 15 laps were a bit of a struggle, but once I got in free air, the pace improved.
“Qualifying was a big click because I was more able to feel the car and push it, and today was another step forward.
“I am really looking forward to exploring even more in the next few weekends, because now I have the feeling that I can play with the car, which is something I couldn’t really do in the previous weekends because I was definitely tense whilst driving.
“I’m getting more experience with the tyres and the car itself, so I am able to feel it more.
“The plan was different, it was to stop earlier, but as the pace was improving lap-by-lap, we decided to stay out because we had not threat from behind and just tried something different.
“I’m not going to lie, at one point on the mediums, it started drizzling and I was hoping for some rain, but it didn’t come. But at the same time, I cannot complain because it was a good experience.”
Antonelli has so far collected P4, P8 and P6 finishes in F1 feature races, placing him fifth in the World Drivers Championship standings with 30 points, 15 behind team-mate George Russell and 10 more than Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.
He is one of six rookies on the grid this season, including Isack Hadjar, who left Sky Sports F1 pundits in hysterics after describing an injury he had in a “sensitive area” and Ollie Bearman.
Source: Motorsport - thesun.co.uk
