Kimi Antonelli Shares Roger Federer’s Ultimate Racing Advice

If you are currently fighting for a Formula 1 World Championship in just your sophomore season, you are going to need some serious mental armor. Fortunately for Mercedes prodigy Kimi Antonelli, he just got a masterclass in pressure management from one of the most ice-cold athletes in human history: Roger Federer.

During Thursday’s media day scrums ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix, Antonelli couldn’t help but fanboy a little bit about his recent high-profile appearance in the Royal Box at Wimbledon.

Fresh off the grueling British Grand Prix at Silverstone, the 19-year-old Italian took a quick detour to SW19 to support his countryman, Jannik Sinner. But he ended up sharing Centre Court with none other than the eight-time Wimbledon champ himself, and they had plenty to talk about.

The Ultimate Advice on Pressure

When a kid carrying the weight of the entire Mercedes factory on his shoulders sits next to a guy with 20 Grand Slam titles, you better believe notes are being taken. Reflecting on the experience, Antonelli revealed exactly what the Swiss legend told him about surviving the relentless grind of a championship hunt.

“It was great, it was my first time at Wimbledon. The past couple of years I have got more into tennis, watching Jannik [Sinner]. [Federer and I] chatted about everything, we chatted about my races, about his career – he is a great athlete, very humble, very open.”

But it was the conversation about mental fortitude that really struck a nerve for the young F1 star.

“On pressure, he told me to focus on one race at a time, control what you can control, and on my emotions, control the ones that can cause you to make mistakes.”

Honestly, it is the exact kind of Jedi-mind-trick wisdom you would expect from Federer. While Max Verstappen has been teaching Antonelli how to push the physical limits of the car over the last few years, getting the mental playbook from tennis royalty might just be the final piece of the puzzle for the Mercedes star.

If Kimi shows up at Spa this weekend completely unbothered by the chaotic Ardennes weather or the high-speed drama of Eau Rouge, we all know exactly who to thank.