Home for a well-deserved break
With the Japanese Grand Prix archived with a victory that earned him the provisional leadership of the world championship, Andrea Kimi Antonelli has returned to San Marino, where he resides, to enjoy the break that will continue until the beginning of May, when F1 returns to the track in Miami (on the same circuit where he obtained pole position in Sprint qualifying last year). In an interview given to Sky Sport F1, the 19-year-old from Bologna spoke about the particularly positive moment he is experiencing, while maintaining a certain focus already for the next event: “Certainly, in the end it’s a shame that we have such a long break, but at the same time I’m not complaining too much because I manage to spend quite a few days at home. It’s important, because anyway it was a fairly intense start to the season, very intense. Also the pre-season was very intense, so it’s always nice and it’s important to be able to spend some days here at home.”
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Gravina’s gaffe and Antonelli’s joke
Also during this interview, Antonelli also reserved a jab at the former President of the FIGC Gabriele Gravina. The latter, after the third consecutive elimination of the Italian national team from the World Cup, had indicated football as a professional sport, unlike all other disciplines considered instead amateur. A statement that sparked numerous reactions from many athletes, including Antonelli. When asked about the fact that, due to his young age (born in 2006), he has never been able to enjoy the best years of the national team, the Mercedes driver responded with an instant joke: “By the way, we do a sport for amateurs…”.
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A reaction that is already making the rounds on social media, but the 19-year-old also added considerations and memories related to the ‘Azzurri’: “Obviously it’s a shame that we’re not going to the World Cup this year… I have a beautiful memory of the European Championships: I remember I was at the European race in Naples, in Sarno, and after winning the race my mother and I rushed to the car and went home as quickly as possible because we wanted to watch the final of the European Championship: that was a beautiful period, because seeing the national team play for the European Championship in that case was really beautiful. Obviously I was very sorry not to see the national team qualify for the World Cup. It’s one more reason to try to continue to bring Italy to the top in my field”
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