Antonelli admits to feeling 'more tense' in Mexico amidst ongoing title talk

Kimi Antonelli says he is struggling with the effects of his recent illness and the ongoing title talk after qualifying in fifth place for the Mexico City Grand Prix.

A top-nine finish for Antonelli is all that is required to secure the drivers’ championship on Sunday, and the Italian will start from fourth after a grid penalty for Max Verstappen. With teammate George Russell qualifying second, Antonelli admits the overall situation has been having an impact following a week when he was suffering from a viral illness.

“Austin I wasn't driving tense, Austin I was much more relaxed, so definitely it's been a thing of this weekend,” Antonelli said.

“I feel very tired to be fair. I still haven't recovered completely. But it hasn't been an easy weekend, and definitely I've been a bit more tense than usual, especially when you keep hearing wherever you go, any time of the day, the same thing, and people telling that it's already done.

“And knowing myself, I've been trying to block as much as possible this noise, but it hasn't been easy and definitely I've been a bit more tense today. But I felt decent in Q2, especially on the used tire, but then on the new tire [in Q3] I struggled to put a lap together just to find the grip, but I feel we have a good chance tomorrow. Still P4, and we saved a set of new tires, so hopefully we can use that and move forward.”

Explaining how unwell he was on Thursday, when he was excused from his media day duties to rest, Antonelli confirmed he is still feeling the effects.

“Very bad – I had a high fever and stomach problems. So it hasn't been easy, but now I feel OK, just low on energy, just feel pretty tired. So it's going to be important to try and sleep well, because I haven't been sleeping well in these days, and hopefully tomorrow I will have more energy.

“I'm going to bombard myself with melatonin, so hopefully I will sleep a good 10 hours. I’m just going to try to relax as much as possible. My family has just arrived, so it's going to be good to have them here, and just going to try to disconnect as much as possible, good sleep, and then ready for tomorrow.”