Andrea Kimi Antonelli says his confidence is “still high,” despite spinning in FP2 ahead of the Formula 1 Italian Grand Prix at Monza on Friday.
The Italian rookie spun 20 minutes into the second session, beaching his Mercedes into the gravel at the second Lesmo corner.
Antonelli’s off brought out the red flags and curtailed the 19-year-old’s running, piling on further pressure.
His incident with Charles Leclerc at the Dutch Grand Prix last week placed the microscope on his recent performances, drawing criticism for the manoeuvre.
But speaking to Sky Sports F1, Antonelli explained he pushed “too hard” but is still showing self-belief as to putting up a good performance at his home race.
“I pushed a bit too hard for the braking moment. It’s a shame,” he said. “The day was looking good as I had a good FP1 and the start of FP2 was looking strong.
“The confidence is still high and we are moving in the right direction with the setup. A shame to miss some laps but I will get ready to deliver the best job tomorrow.”
Antonelli indicated he still has plenty of reason to be buoyant about his race weekend, saying the car’s set-up is looking positive.
“I felt pretty confident [before the spin],” he said. “We were moving in the right direction with the setup.
“Obviously it’s a shame to miss the last, but on my side I will try to get ready and deliver the best of tomorrow.”
Antonelli believes the competition is going to be close, but is hopeful that the Mercedes’ pace is strong enough to compete for good points.
I think quali is going to be very tight, as always,” he said. “It looks pretty close out there. It’s going to be very tight, but as I said, pace felt pretty good today.
“I will just try to deliver the best job as possible and try to start as far forward as possible tomorrow.”
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