Charles Leclerc during the media day in Zandvoort
Charles Leclerc during the media day in Zandvoort
F1 News

Leclerc slams Antonelli’s move after scoring painful DNF in Dutch GP

20:27, 31 Aug
Updated: 20:39, 31 Aug
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Charles Leclerc spoke about the contact with Kimi Antonelli that took him out of the Dutch GP, acknowledging the Mercedes driver’s fault for the overly risky move.

The Dutch GP was far from a memorable race for Charles Leclerc, who was involved twice in contact with both Mercedes drivers, ultimately suffering the worst in the clash with Kimi Antonelli.

The Monegasque found himself engaged with the Italian driver coming out of the famous banked corner, Turn 3, with the latter, having taken the lower line, running into understeer and hitting the Ferrari, forcing Leclerc into retirement.

Conversely, Antonelli’s race was also heavily compromised: he not only had to pit to replace his wing but also received a ten-second penalty for the incident, followed by a second penalty for speeding in the pit lane.

Charles Leclerc in Zandvoort
Charles Leclerc in Zandvoort

Leclerc believes Antonelli's move was 'too much'

Speaking to the media, including GPblog, after the race, Leclerc commented on what happened with the young Italian driver: “I think it's a mistake from Kimi. You've got to be very aggressive on a track like this to overtake, which I think he tried (to be aggressive).''

''Maybe it was a bit too much, and he went on to touch my rear left, and that was the end of my race, so it's disappointing.''

When asked if it was a rookie mistake, the Monegasque added: ''I wouldn't describe it as a rookie mistake—I think it's just a mistake which can happen the first year or the fifth year. And again, on a track like this you need to be aggressive, but that was too much.”