Sports

Bonnington Credits Stern Talk for Turning Kimi Antonelli’s Rookie Season Around

By Lydia Mee

Peter Bonnington, Kimi Antonelli’s race engineer for Mercedes, said a “really stern conversation” at the end of the 2025 European season helped the Italian driver recover from a difficult rookie year and become the 2026 world champion. After Antonelli finished third at the Mexican Grand Prix, securing his first title, Bonnington reflected on how the driver learned from his setbacks. He recalled that during the 2025 season Antonelli struggled, but after the talk he asked, “Why didn’t you give me a kick up the arse sooner?” and subsequently improved dramatically. Antonelli, who was 20 at the time, went from a challenging debut to winning nine Grands Prix in 2026, taking the championship lead after victories in China and Japan. Bonnington, who has worked with Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher, noted that managing a driver is as important as managing the car, describing Antonelli as easy to keep happy and praising his resilience.