Teenage prodigy Kimi Antonelli continued his meteoric rise as he clinched his fourth straight win of the season after winning the Canadian GP on Sunday, May 24. Antonelli extended the championship lead over teammate George Russell, who retired midway through the race at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.
Antonelli began from second on the grid behind Russell as the two Mercedes drivers battled with each other for first place. The two exchanged the top spot several times in their battles at the start of the race. However, Russell was forced to retire his Mercedes W17 due to a technical issue on Lap 30, which forced a Virtual Safety Car.
The Italian held his lead thereafter as he kept Red Bull's Max Verstappen and Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton at bay throughout. Hamilton finished second to take his second podium of the season, after passing Verstappen in the final few laps as the Red Bull driver bagged his maiden podium of the season.
Antonelli first to win four races in a row
Meanwhile, Antonelli has etched his name into the history books after winning the Canadian GP as he became the first-ever racer to clinch their first four races consecutively. He was earlier tied with former legends Damon Hill and Mika Haikkinen for three straight first wins in their careers.
Antonelli's battle with Russell was the biggest talking point of the race as the two traded the top position frequently as the battle between the two teammates intensified. Russell's retirement handed the Italian a great chance to clinch the race, and he did just that; however, the 19-year-old was not pleased with the retirement.
"Not really the way I wanted to win, if I have to be honest, because it was a tough fight with George," said Antonelli. "It was very intense, but I think it would have been cool to see how it would have ended up because we were going at each other.
"We were pushing and I think we both did a lot of mistakes. I think on my side, I made a mistake that was a little bit in a crucial moment when I went back in front and started to pull away. "That was a mistake that if I could have avoided, would have been better. It was a tough battle, it was intense, and of course, I felt sorry for him, but we'll take the win and move forward."
Russell left in disbelief after DNF
Russell was among the five racers to have a DNF to their name in Canada. Having pruned the championship lead of Antonelli after the Sprint race to 18, he saw the gap widen again after his technical failure forced him to retire his car.
Russell was left in disbelief, stating that he felt "like somebody doesn't want me to fight or compete for this championship before adding, "three out of the last five races there's just been something really going against us. [I’m] just a bit lost for words right now."
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