Formula 1’s boy wonder Kimi Antonelli was his usual ebullient self after finishing runner-up to Lando Norris at the final Dutch Grand Prix before its departure from the F1 calendar.
He had, after all, extended his championship lead to 59 points over George Russell and Lewis Hamilton, who are tied on 183 points to the Italian’s 242.
But two days before Antonelli turns 20, there is cause for concern in a title race which, at one point, he had looked in danger of running away with unchallenged.
The Mercedes has not been the fastest car at the last two races and there will be some head scratching to understand how Antonelli in Zandvoort, on newer soft tyres, could not remotely erode the race leader’s track advantage despite Norris being on the hard tyre – in theory, the slowest available rubber.
On top of that, Antonelli knows his home race in Monza next weekend could yet prove a painful one as he is expected to take a grid penalty by exceeding his allocation of engine components.
Mercedes know they have upgrades to come but, having started the season well clear of the rest of the grid, they are now falling behind in the development race.
The public-facing message from their rivals in the wake of Zandvoort is that the title fight is not currently in their collective reckoning. However, the reality is quite different.
We assess the challengers to the championship leader.
1. Lando Norris (Current position: 4th – 159 pts)
Lando Norris looks like the driver to beat after another win in Zandvoort (Photo: Formula 1/Getty)There is an almighty gap to close to Antonelli – 83 points – but Max Verstappen packed up from Zandvoort a year ago with 104 points to make up in the title race, and Norris will know better than most how things played out in the subsequent race weekends.
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella unconvincingly claimed to not know the points disparity while Norris himself was almost apologetic as he wheeled out the old adage of it being “one race at a time”.
But behind closed doors, Stella, Norris and the rest of the McLaren workforce will know they are very much back in the title fight. On current form, the defending champion is the driver to beat.
At the season opener in Australia, they were nine tenths of a second slower than the Mercedes. And their pace of development has been astonishing – a new rear wing assembly, revised central bodywork and a new rear brake duct among the changes helping make them the quickest on the grid at the moment.
Title threat: 9/10
2. George Russell (Current position: 2nd – 183 pts)
George Russell is currently (joint-)closest to Antonelli on points (Photo: Getty)Russell looked to be back to his best when he rocked up in Amsterdam fresh from getting engaged during the summer break.
He appeared far more carefree than he has done in the first half of the season and joked that getting down on one knee would equate to him being a tenth or two quicker per lap.
That didn’t seem so fanciful when he took sprint pole and the win, and started on the front row of the grid for the Grand Prix. But he fluffed his start and also the restart before proving he is still a force to be reckoned with in the manner in which he held off Lewis Hamilton at the death.
That said, Russell needs a run of good results over his teammate, and rapidly.
Title threat: 8/10
3. The Ferraris (Current positions: Hamilton 3rd – 183 pts; Leclerc 5th – 155)
Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc have a race quick enough to trouble Mercedes and McLaren (Photo: Reuters)Ferrari will not be lacking in confidence heading into their home race next weekend, with both Hamilton and Charles Leclerc very evenly matched from one weekend to the next.
In the sprint race in Zandvoort, the Ferrari pair had arguably the best race pace but couldn’t translate that into a win, let down in the shortened version and the subsequent grand prix by their lack of qualifying pace.
If they can remedy that, then they clearly have a race that’s quick enough to trouble both the Mercedes and the McLarens.
Title threat: 7/10
4. Max Verstappen (Current position: 6th – 112 pts)
Max Verstappen crashed out at Zandvoort on Sunday; far from an ideal farewell to the Dutch Grand Prix (Photo: Getty)This was supposed to be a weekend of good news for Verstappen and the Orange Army who filled the stands. It started with him committing his future to the Red Bull team until 2030.
And it ended with the Dutchman clattering the barriers at high speed, hardly an apt farewell to his home race.
But in truth, Verstappen would have likely been scrapping it out for P7 at best, his car the fourth-fastest on the grid. That said, it was at the same circuit a year ago where Red Bull first got an understanding of the issues with the car before the sensational turnaround kicked off in Monza.
Title threat: 5/10
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