Kimi Antonelli Mexico Grand Prix engine failure, Digi Mart USA News: Italian driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who has just been crowned Formula 1 world champion, came close to not having the weekend he hoped for at the Mexican Grand Prix. The Mercedes driver came close to abandoning the race in Mexico, where he finished third behind Max Verstappen of Red Bull and Lewis Hamilton of Ferrari, a result that could have affected his title.
Mercedes deputy team principal Bradley Lord revealed the details, saying the car suffered a problem with the power unit a few laps from the end. “We recovered the car after the race and, when we dismantled the floor, it was completely covered in oil,” Lord explained.
“The oil sump had cracked, and Kimi told us he began to feel the engine had problems about four laps from the end,” the Mercedes executive said. Lord added that Antonelli “was really close to retiring from the race and, even so, managed to hold on until the finish line.”
According to Motorsport, had the Italian retired from the Mexican Grand Prix, he would have needed Lewis Hamilton not to win the race in order to clinch the championship. Because Hamilton finished second behind Verstappen, Antonelli would still have won the title, though without standing on the iconic podium with the two most recent Formula 1 champions.
