Lewis Hamilton expressed Kimi Antonelli’s maiden Formula 1 pole position in Miami “brought warmth to my heart” as his successor at Mercedes “silenced the critics”.
It was a landmark achievement a mere six rounds into Antonelli’s rookie campaign, and one that earned him recognition from both Lando Norris and Max Verstappen.
Hamilton, who moved to Ferrari after 12 seasons with Mercedes, took to Instagram to share a video including Antonelli and long-time race engineer Peter Bonnington.
The Briton, who won six Drivers’ titles with Mercedes, had implored the German marque to overlook more established candidates to promote Antonelli to replace him.
Hamilton believes that Antonelli’s headline result at the Miami International Autodrome dismissed the remaining scepticism surrounding the decision to promote him.
“I posted because it made me… I saw the video of Bono and Kimi and Toto [Wolff], and it genuinely just brought warmth to my heart,” Hamilton told media including Motorsport Week.
“I’ve been in that team for a long, long time.
“Bono is just the best, and I know there was a lot of question marks around whether or not to take on a more experienced driver.
“To then continue on and continue to work hard and get a pole – it kind of silences all the critics. I love to see that in an underdog. It’s such a great story.”
Antonelli urged to ‘enjoy’ F1 journey
Antonelli’s Sprint race unravelled when he lost out at Turn 1 and then was hit with misfortune when Max Verstappen was released unsafely into his path in the pitlane.
However, the Italian emerged with points once a group ahead were penalised, and then achieved third place on the grid as he out-qualified team-mate George Russell.
Hamilton has admitted that he hopes Antonelli, who dropped to sixth in the main race, can continue to thrive without losing sight of the enjoyment that comes with it.
“I would just say to continue doing what he’s doing,” he added. “I think he knows what he’s doing – and just continue to enjoy it.”
READ MORE – Kimi Antonelli bidding to sustain Miami breakthrough across upcoming F1 races
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