The Race F1 Podcast Chinese GP: Antonelli stars, but did Ferrari in-fighting stop them getting second?
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Mar 15, 2026 A lively breakdown of Kimi Antonelli's surprising maiden win and whether it signals title potential. Deep dive into Ferrari intra-team battles and whether their fighting cost them track position. Talk on Mercedes' weekend dominance, Verstappen's complaints about rules, McLaren's reliability disaster, and standout drives from Ollie Bearman and Carlos Sainz.
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Antonelli's Win Proves He Can Manage Pressure
- Kimi Antonelli's Shanghai win arrested a wobble in his rookie season and showed he can convert clean-air pace into controlled race victories.
- He capitalised on pole, a strong restart and tyre management to build a 7s+ gap and resist George Russell's attempts to close in.
Battling Costs Tyre Life In Yo-Yo Trains
- Yo-yo or 'rubber band' racing penalises those who engage in prolonged wheel-to-wheel fights by increasing tyre wear and losing long-term pace.
- George Russell's battles with Ferraris earlier in the race cost extra tyre degradation, benefiting Antonelli in clean air.
Let Drivers Race To Learn Faster
- Ferrari letting Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton race each other was the right choice because policing world-class drivers risks stifling performance and learning.
- The intra-fight exposed tyre and deployment interactions that help the team learn, even if it sometimes hurts short-term tyre life.