Antonelli says qualifying crash left him 'very mad' ahead of Azerbaijan Grand Prix

Kimi Antonelli has described himself as "very mad" after crashing during qualifying for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, a result that will see him start the race from 16th on the grid.

The crash represents a setback for Antonelli, who had been building a reputation as one of the promising young drivers on the Formula 1 grid this season. Starting from 16th significantly complicates his prospects for a strong result in Sunday's race, given how difficult overtaking can be on the Baku street circuit.

'Comes back to earth'

Antonelli characterised the incident as a moment that brought him back down after a period of strong form, acknowledging his frustration with how qualifying unfolded. Street circuits like Baku carry inherent risk, with narrow margins for error along the walls lining the track, and mistakes during qualifying can be costly given the difficulty of passing during the race itself.

The team will now need to work out race strategy options to help Antonelli recover positions from further back in the field, potentially relying on pit-stop strategy or safety car periods, which are relatively common at the Baku circuit, to move up the order.

Attention now turns to Sunday's race, where Antonelli and his team will be looking to limit the damage from a difficult qualifying session and salvage points despite the low starting position.