How did Kimi Antonelli hold off Lewis Hamilton in Monaco chaos?

21:06George Russell:It was Ferrari, Ferrari, and they looked so good through practice. And then suddenly you've got a front row that's Antonelli and Verstappen. And again, like both those laps were just, they were bang on the money. And Max just, you know, he always does around this place, finds something special. So gutted what could have been fight between those two for the win.

21:23Lewis Hamilton:You know, you can never count Max out, particularly around a circuit like Monaco. That's such a driver's circuit where you've got to have so much confidence and Max really doesn't lack any of that.

21:31Max Verstappen:But yeah, it was over for him before it even started. And it seemed like he'd had sort of issues on the formation lap already that he then obviously they carried over and they weren't able to sort because, you know, between him and Hadjar, I mean, I don't think we've gone into Hadjar enough.

21:44Lewis Hamilton:But I mean, if you just compile all of his radio messages from today's race, they had a lot of issues in that Red Bull. And I mean, obviously, Max, we didn't get to see how the race would have played out for him. But if it would have been anything like Hajar's, it feels like there's a lot that they need to work on there. The Red Bull powertrain side, even though Lewis gave us a bit of a nugget in the pen after the race saying that the Red Bull powertrain, And apparently, according to the ADUO findings, is the quickest of them all, which, of course, if you don't know, is the additional development and upgrade opportunities this season, followed by Mercedes.

22:20Lewis Hamilton:And then Ferrari apparently are down. So they will get some, what is he referred to, I think, as coupons to make some upgrades. But so they are quick, but they are obviously suffering with a lot of issues, both from a drivability perspective, from the power unit side of things. There's a lot for those drivers to have to deal with in the car. So for him to even have put it on the front row, I think, is already, you know, just another sign of what a driver he is. I think it shows just how complex hybrid is. And, you know, Formula One is brilliant at finding solutions to technical problems. And this will just advance so quickly.

22:52But it is obviously frustrating for those that have these technical problems. And you can hear it in the driver's voices. and you know when I interviewed Lewis after the Grand Prix when he sort of when I said where's the main issue and he sort of gestured over to the car and I'm thinking oh my goodness you know how do you criticize a Ferrari when Alain Prost a four-time world champion criticized his Ferrari he got fired he did yes he did yes he did but I think they're more criticizing the regs than their individual cars you know and once again we had Fernando over the course of the weekend saying that these types of cars had no place even racing.

23:35And, yeah, it's a shame. It's a shame. And, you know, let's look at Lando, you know, world champion, and he's kind of coming into every weekend a bit browbeaten, not expecting much out of it. Again, tough day for him. Power unit, what was it? Was it the battery? Was it the engine that gave out on him during the race? You know, at one point it completely gave out, and he was like, well, it's game over, and we're going to have to play rear gunner here. Then it came back, and he was back up and fighting again. And then it just went poof in the tunnel and, um, and, and it's game. And it's, and that's, that's a shame.

24:06And you're always going to have reliability issues in the sport, but when they're ultimately seemingly all coming down to the same thing and different issues with the same thing, it's, um, yeah.

24:16Max Verstappen:Yeah. So Zach was saying during the race that it seemed like it was definitely a power unit issue.

24:20Lewis Hamilton:So that'll be a HPP, which is a Mercedes high, high performance powertrain, um, who, who deals with those engines. but they didn't understand what exactly was causing the issue. So I think there was a little bit of digging for them to do to figure out what the issue is. But yeah, not great for them to have to. I mean, at some point he was, as you say, backing the pack up for Oscar to be able to do a pit stop and all the life sort of games that we love to see around Monaco. But a sad way for it to end for them. But just to go back to Lewis and him pointing out the card, things look like they're going pretty well for him at the moment.

24:53Lewis Hamilton:I mean, he's been very happy in that. We've barely mentioned him. He's been very, very happy in that Ferrari. I mean, that's now two podiums in a row, two second places on the podium. I mean, I'm starting to get very used to seeing him and Kimi. I mean, Kimi basically almost sat on his lap in the cool down room. But Lewis seems to be much happier in that car. So maybe there are still some niggles, but it seems to be suiting him and his driving style for now, at least. Let's see what happens in Barcelona. Yeah, and up to second in the championship as well, ladies and gentlemen. Yeah. And Monaco acts like a magnifying glass, doesn't it?

25:26For issues that you have with a car. If you're unhappy with your car, if you don't feel at one with your car, nowhere is that on display more than at Monaco. So for Lewis to be qualifying as well as he did to be racing as well as he did, I think it shows, as you said, Naomi, just that level of ease of comfort that he finally has at Ferrari to be able to throw that thing around and get the times out of it. But that was it's a and it's a joy. It's a joy to be able to see Lewis back up there and fighting. But and we've used this phrase before game recognizes game, you know, and and Lewis almost, you know, doffing his hat to to Kimi and recognizing here is the next generation.

26:07You know, this is, you know, he's already kind of the torch has already been passed to Max. But is the torch being passed on again to to the newer generation, the even younger generation of Kimi Antonelli? it's astonishing to think that Hadjar and Antonelli's ages combined

26:24George Russell:are still less than Lewis. 19 plus 21 is 40 and Lewis is 41. I love that. Shame.

26:30Max Verstappen:Let's not keep reminding him of that. How old are you, Will? 45. Yeah. Don't even ask. Right. Other than Kimi being brilliant, Lewis being back, frustrations at Red Bull, what else did we take away from this weekend that we can really get into? George, I guess. I was trying not to talk about him, but let's be honest, it's difficult.

26:57George Russell:We've got to talk about him. I mean, he entered the season as the championship favorite, and for a good reason. Mercedes had the best car, but after that first weekend in Australia, where's he been?

27:08Max Verstappen:Yeah, do you know what? I think that I was somewhat disappointed a little bit with George this weekend because things could have looked very, very different for him in Canada, obviously.

27:17Lewis Hamilton:Like that was his race. He should have won if things didn't go the way they did with the engine issues that he had.

27:24Max Verstappen:But to come to Monaco and not only just not be right there with his teammate, but to be quite far down, I feel a sense of concern for him because it is going to continue to knock at his confidence.

27:35Lewis Hamilton:And, you know, the excuse in Miami was that, you know, there was that sort of clay court versus, you know, normal tennis court analogy or whatever they were using or bogey circuits. Then we got to Canada, things were a lot better. Obviously here, it is a different beast in its own. But again, it's a track that the driver needs to feel at

27:55Max Verstappen:one with a car in order to be able to push it to its limits. Something that Kimi was so clearly able to do. And he kept saying today how wonderful the car was, how great it felt, how he was just able to do his thing and so why is George not able to do that I don't understand what he's not

28:10Lewis Hamilton:getting back from the car in terms of a response or a feeling that's getting him in a position where he's able to extract everything from it and it concerns me from him for him a little bit I don't feel any sympathy and I don't think that we can look at Canada and say that that should

28:25George Russell:have been his race because Kimi was taking the race because Kimi was taking the race to him and they were having a great fight and up until the point is there was not a done deal it was not a hundred percent is um the reason i say i don't have any sympathy is because your heart is no george isn't a rookie he's not in his second year of formula one he he is coming into this year he is and he was the team leader he was the one expected to step up and take this brilliant car that mercedes have produced and put in a world championship winning performance and we've said from from when kimmy had won his first race then his second race then his third race.

29:02George Russell:It's how George responds that will be the measure of the man and will be the ultimate determination as to whether he is a world champion in the making or not. And I've not yet seen the reaction from George to pull this result back, to pull the team back to him, to pull the results back to him, to mount a challenge to a kid who is in his second year in the sport. And as you guys were saying, has only just passed his driving test, only just moved out with his mum. You know, the youngest driver in history to win the monaco grand prix george should be given his experience given his knowledge given everything that he knows about the sport and given the expectations placed upon him he should be able to be fighting this world championship and at the moment his guard is down and he is being knocked out like he has to get up off the mat and start swinging.

29:57Otherwise, this thing is done. Barcelona, for me, I know we're talking about Monaco as they strip down the barriers behind us. Interestingly, for those who might want to know, it takes three months to build the Monaco circuit, and it only takes one month to take it down. But as they're already taking the circuit down, he needs, he needs to show he can take a pole in Barcelona, and assuming the car's quick enough, of course, he just needs to be beating Kimi. Let's be honest, if he doesn't beat Kimi, it's It's over. No world championship. But we said, listen, we said that in Canada.

30:28George Russell:We said that for Monaco. And now we're saying that for Barcelona. When did George Russell make his F1 debut? How many years ago is it now? Because I think there's probably... Is it six? Well, I think there's probably a good comparison there between DC saying how long it takes to build the Monaco circuit up and how long it takes to tear it down. George Russell has had the years of building up his career, but how many years of being Kimi Antonelli's teammate is it going to take to tear down that reputation? because I think we're already seeing the signs of it right now. You can build up the reputation all you want.

30:57George Russell:You are kicking a man while he's down. But you can say as much as you want. You can say for as long as you want, all I need is the car. All I need is the car. All I need is the opportunity. Well, guess what? You've got the car. You've got the opportunity. And you're having your ass handed to you. Well, when he started in Formula One, then Kimi was 12. It was 2019 that George started in Formula One. There you go, yeah.

31:16Lewis Hamilton:Fine, so seven years. I mean, look, this is why I was saying. I was saying I'm a little bit disappointed because I thought that he would at least come back swinging. After there was a lot of criticism, it would have been good for him to just, as you say, get back up and start swinging. But that hasn't been the case. However, I don't know if sympathy is the right thing, but I do feel a little bit for him because, as you say, it's been a long time coming. He has paid his dues. He's paid his wages. He's done his thing. He's sweat, blood, tears, all of that. He's given everything to it. And he's always been a great driver.

31:47Lewis Hamilton:He's always been a great member of the team in the sense that he works very hard. He helps them bring that car forward. So like, he's a great soldier to have in your team. And now, unfortunately, Kimmy's come, he's had a tough first season and he's just come out the gates swinging in year two and left George sort of stranded. And yeah, I feel disappointed for him because I want him firstly to give us the battle that we all want to see. But secondly, I mean, George, we know that you, come on, he, we know that George is a great driver, right? Look what did in the junior formula. He won everything year in, year out.

32:20Lewis Hamilton:And then he sat in a Williams, he paid his dues. He came into the Mercedes team when they were absolutely not what the Mercedes team were used to being. And now they've got the car and he's not delivering. And I feel for him. I do.

32:32George Russell:I don't, the concept of paying your dues, I don't think is a, I don't think it's a real thing. You take your opportunity when it's presented to you or you don't. Bonnet Becker at 17 winning Wimbledon. You know, you just take it, you get the chance, bam. This is the moment.

32:47Max Verstappen:This is the moment. So why is he not doing it then? Great question. That's the million dollar question. What's going wrong? Why is he not gelling with that car? God knows. Well, I guess you're the best until someone better turns up, I guess. Will, you've summed it up beautifully. Okay, well, listen, we're going to take a little break. So in the meantime, why don't you head over to your social media platforms and follow us? It's at Up to Speed Show. If you're not already subscribed to us on YouTube, please make sure you hit that red button. But make sure you stay with us because in a little bit we're going to be discussing how things didn't go according to plan for local hero Charles Leclerc.

33:28Max Verstappen:Shall we talk about Charles? I mean, when we saw him go into the war, and it happened in Quali as well, but in the race, I kind of almost immediately went, Oh gosh, not again, Charles, not again, not again. because I feel like there's this saying in German,

33:42Lewis Hamilton:which is like, Pokal oder Hospital, which translates to trophy or hospital. And that's really the way I feel. Yeah, you know how Charles often, you know, I feel like he's got almost so little fear for the limits that he's either like right on them and going so quickly or he's in the wall. But then obviously we found out a little bit more and it looks like it was, he's adamant that it was the breaks, but we obviously saw things transpire. She led to the red flag was the peeling of the tarmac. So what do you guys think? What did you make of it all? Look, it's a restart, isn't it? And you're trying to get a bit of an advantage, but for Charles to make that mistake there, that's not a Charles Leclerc style mistake at that point of a race.

34:31And I know it's been two weekends now on the bounce that he's been complaining about the breaks. and again we talk about the confidence you need in your car at Monaco so look I just I feel for him in that in that moment was it going to be the win no

34:49George Russell:but it's his frustration I think is is is genuine and legitimate and when he comes over the radio in that moment and his first reaction isn't to go oh guys I'm sorry I've screwed up but to go you know I'm not taking the blame for this it's the brakes I've been telling you guys it's the brakes that felt like a very honest reaction yeah i think i would agree with that he didn't look sort of head in hands how you know i'm such an idiot to remember when he crashed in uh was it azebubajan and qualifying and he's like i'm such an idiot there was none of that it's like look anyone in that car would have had that situation so there's a lot of complexity with these cars and if they have got issues with the brakes on top of trying to get everything else to work and And, you know, we also stayed a charge and restarts and all of that sort of thing.

35:34Yeah, he's committed going forward to that team until well into 2030 something. So I think he can be open and honest. And therefore, I agree with you. I don't think an outright driver mistake. I think it was just a combination of the tools that they have in their toolbox were, unfortunately, not in the right drawers.

35:53Max Verstappen:I have to say, you know, Charles, obviously, as we've mentioned, doesn't always get it right. but Ferrari also on very many occasions doesn't get it right and I think that I've seen a difference in Charles this year in the way that he handles situations the way that he communicates what he needs and wants from the team sometimes over the radio this year I think has been a lot more sort of demanding you know he's not anymore like almost feels like he owes something to the team

36:18Lewis Hamilton:he's like okay right if we want to start winning championships this is what I need from you give me this don't give me this and he's being a lot more sort of instructive with the way that he's dealing with the team. How much of that do you think will help DC? I mean, your time in F1 dealing with teams, how did you have to manage those kind of relationships? But at the same time, without being soft and the nice guy, like you still need to get what you need from them, right? Yeah, honesty. That's how you deal with it. And the only place I've been able to be fully honest in the workplace is within a Formula One team.

36:50Because there's no woke sort of sugarcoating. you know somebody's either delivering or they're not somebody's either got an answer or they haven't if they're responsible for breaks if they can't answer the question find me someone who can you know and if you've crashed the car you don't try and blame someone else you go i crashed the car and this is why i think i crashed the car so that's how you deal with it yeah well it seems

37:15Max Verstappen:like he was very adamant even after having seen obviously that the race was red flagged and seen

37:20Lewis Hamilton:the footage being played in the background about, you know, all that sort of what looked like rubber on the side of the track was apparently parts and bits of the tarmac. He was still adamant that it was the brakes and he'd seen something in the data, having come back into the pits, he'd seen something in the data that alluded to that it was actually that. So yeah, maybe it was a combination of the two things of him already being wired and then the brakes not working probably to slow him down and get him through the corner. But there is obviously an issue there that that he's dealing with. And he's adamant that that's what it was.

37:52So I think you just got to go with his reaction really on that. But let's be honest, we were expecting this to be a Ferrari weekend. It was not. It never looked like it was going to be their weekend after qualifying, despite looking so brilliant during practice. So back to the drawing board, bit of a head scratcher for them on a weekend that everybody expected to suit them after practice. And yeah, but great for Lewis. Brilliant for Isaac to get on the podium battling that very injured car. Proper battling drive from him. Really feel bad for Pierre because he drove beautifully. And congratulations to Kimi Antonelli.

38:32The run continues. What are you doing now, DC? Are you heading off to party with Kim and Lewis or is it a cup of soup and bed? Well, actually, when I was on the grid and doing my television work and a grid walk, I went up to Lando and you could tell he was a bit sort of, you know, we're on the fourth row. It's going to be difficult, all that sort of thing. So he was not down, but you could tell he wasn't like tingling with excitement for about what's to come. So I said to him, look, just remember, you're a world champion and you're a handsome boy. And as I was as I was about to walk away with the microphone, he went, yeah, just like you.

39:08And then he went, no, but he went apart from the world championship.

39:16No, but I loved it because it showed that, you know, in that moment, it was just someone that I know and I know well. And he's here in Monaco. So I caught up with him after the race. And, you know, I was like, look, sorry for the outcome. And, yeah, look, we're going to work and try and figure it all out. And I said, on the upside, you've got a hell of a lot of energy in your body to go party. So, you know, I might need to go and check out exactly where he's heading.

39:41Max Verstappen:You're going to go dry his tears then? Yeah, his tears are gone. He's focused. Genuinely, he has a world championship and he is a good looking boy. And you can only drive the car that you've got. So they'll bounce back, but it's looking like it's a one season championship based on the performance from Kimi Antonelli at the moment. You didn't answer the question, DC. It's DC partying.

40:07George Russell:You didn't answer the question.

40:08Max Verstappen:I'm very sad not to be there. Tell us what's on the party menu tonight. What are you doing? Come on, just give it to us. We're not there. We want to know. So we want to feel like we're there. We want to imagine it. Make us jealous, DC. Well, hey, kids, here's the thing. I am being sensible tonight, as I have been the last several Sunday nights of the Grand Prix, because normally I was watching the Indy 500. Because Monday is my, don't bother trying to call me, I ain't picking up because I'm at a beach party close to Monaco. And that has been frequented by a few drivers in the past. But I know one thing, I'll be there at midday.

40:43I'll be the welcoming party for those that come. And probably by about six o 'clock, you'll see me on one of the tabloid. Yeah, back on the sun again.

40:53Max Verstappen:I was going to say, I thought you were going to tell us you were all partied out after your stag do. But I mean, DC being all partied out, I think that's never going to happen. I know exactly where you're headed on Monday, DC. Have a wonderful time. Thank you. Brilliant stuff. okay well whilst you go get ready for some beauty sleep ahead of your party tomorrow dc will good luck with your day of work that's all we have time for unfortunately today for those of you at home watching or listening please head over to your socials and follow us it's at up to speed show or if you want to send us an email it's up to speed at global.com we've got episodes coming out as usual every monday and every thursday and catch us on thursday for our episode ahead of the barcelona grand prix see you then

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