Antonelli among the Immortals. But Ferrari no longer knows how to win

What Kimi Antonelli achieved at Monza earns him a rightful place in the pantheon of Italian sport. We’re on a par with the Cuneo–Pinerolo stage won by Fausto Coppi in 1949. But on that day, the ‘Campionissimo’ broke away from the pack and rode off alone. Here, however, we are talking about comebacks. And so what comes to mind is what Alberto Tomba did in 1996 at the World Championships in Sierra Nevada (sixth after the first run, he made up 81 hundredths on Jagge and won the world slalom title). Or Pietro Mennea’s prodigious comeback at the 1980 Moscow Olympics, when he was seventh going into the bend in the 200-metre final before overtaking the field and clinching the gold medal. Andrea Kimi Antonelli has earned himself a place amongst the Immortals at Monza. Starting from 19th on the grid and finishing the race on the top step of the podium is something for which there is no rational explanation. Or rather, there are many. But none stands out entirely above the others. All right, he’s driving a rocket and had a new engine. Fair enough. He was lucky with the red flag and then with the virtual safety car. All true. Yet he contributed enormously, executing 26 (twenty-six!) overtakes—not counting those on lapped cars. Naturally, on days like this, the rhetoric is unstoppable. The claim that ‘Kimi has united the country, bringing with him the support of Ferrari fans’ is the most demagogic of all. It is true that the crowd at Monza was heard singing ‘Voooolare!’ to the tune of Mimmo Modugno and dancing to the Ricchi e Poveri song ‘Sarà perché ti amo’. The only ones missing were Toto Cutugno and Al Bano. In this respect, Italy seems unable to move on from the 1980s.

Kimi has won – congratulations to Kimi. However, it would be inaccurate to suggest that Ferrari fans are now supporting him. Antonelli has overtaken his team-mate George Russell – and done so in style. An Englishman, and not even a particularly likeable one at that (apart from Mr Bean, there aren’t exactly that many of them round those parts). The comparison with Riccardo Patrese at Imola on 1 May 1983 is not meaningful. On that day, the Italian driver, at the wheel of a Williams, went off the track with just a few laps to go, effectively handing the victory to the Ferrari driver Patrick Tambay. The crowd at Imola cheered as if it were a decisive goal in stoppage time. At Monza, it would have been interesting, from a sociological point of view, to observe the crowd’s reaction had the race pitted the youngster from Bologna against a Ferrari driver. None of this occurred, partly due to the Scuderia’s lack of foresight.

As usual, heralded by the regime’s cheerleaders, the Rossa proved once again to be the Queen of Friday. Only to falter on Saturday and collapse on the day when points are on the line. It’s a shame, as the omens were even pointing to a Rossa one-two. Instead, we witnessed an inexcusable collapse. Leclerc’s behaviour is inexcusable: skilful and generous, yet equally reckless in forcing his team-mate off the track at the second corner and then crashing into the barrier at the ‘Alboreto’ – risking a broken neck after being overtaken twice. The Monegasque driver warrants serious reflection. From being ‘destined’ for success, he is, sadly, turning into someone destined for failure. This is, of course, partly down to the fact that he has never had a winning car at his disposal. But he is contributing far too much of his own making to it. Attempting to push beyond the limits of his car is commendable – provided he does not turn himself into a modern-day Don Quixote. Leclerc is not a champion, in the sense that he has never (or not yet) won a World Championship. He is an excellent driver, soon to turn 29. He has won nine Grand Prix races in his career. Antonelli has already won seven in a single season. He is allowed to feel a little frustrated. However, taking out his team-mate and leaving another zero in his points tally is not acceptable. Let’s start afresh straight away in Madrid next weekend, when we’ll see his absolute debut in a Grand Prix. Anything can still happen; anyone who thinks Antonelli has already won the Drivers’ World Championship would do well to wait a few more races. Not too many, perhaps. But a few, certainly.