Antonelli fends off "stressful" Verstappen charge for career-best P2 in São Paulo

Written by Kavi Khandelwal

Andrea Kimi Antonelli capped off a stellar weekend in São Paulo by securing a career-best second-place finish, adding to his P2 result from Saturday's Sprint.

Credit: Formula One

The Mercedes rookie delivered a masterful defensive drive in the closing laps, fending off a "stressful" charge from Max Verstappen, whose pace he admitted caught him by surprise.

Speaking to Jolyon Palmer post-race, Antonelli first explained that he was fortunate to even be in contention after being involved in the chaotic Lap 9 restart.

"To be fair, I was lucky to come away from the restart with the contact," Antonelli said, referencing the incident with Oscar Piastri that ended Charles Leclerc's race. "Need to check the car, it felt a bit weird afterwards, but still a good race."

Despite the car feeling "weird," Antonelli settled into a strong rhythm.

However, his race was far from over. In the final stages, he faced intense pressure from Verstappen, who was charging on fresher tires. The speed of the Red Bull's advance left the rookie stunned.

"I don't know where this guy came from, to be honest! I didn't see it coming," Antonelli exclaimed. "The last laps were very stressful with Max coming... but luckily with free air we were able to maintain a decent pace and finish P2."

With the reigning world champion looming in his mirrors, Antonelli explained how he managed the pressure. He used the aerodynamic wake of his own car as a defensive tool, strategically increasing his pace just enough to keep Verstappen in the "dirty air."

"I found my rhythm," he said. "When he was closing in, I raised the pace and started to push a bit more. With these cars with dirty air it's a bit difficult to follow so I tried to use that to my advantage and it paid off."

The "paid off" result was a hard-earned P2, marking a new career high for the Italian and solidifying a massive points haul from his standout weekend in Brazil.