Kimi Antonelli reveals Mercedes upgrade to overcome starting issue

Kimi Antonelli confirmed Mercedes has introduced a new paddle and software updates to address his recurring start problems. The championship leader has lost places off the line at every grand prix this season, dropping from second to seventh in Australia and from first to sixth in Japan, before recovering to win.

Why it matters:

Antonelli's start issues are a clear weak point for the Mercedes driver who leads the standings by 20 points. As rivals close the gap, eliminating this flaw is essential to maintaining his advantage and keeping McLaren, which uses the same power unit but launches much better, in check.

The details:

• A redesigned paddle on Antonelli's side aims to improve clutch release consistency.
• Mercedes has also worked on software and clutch robustness to extract more performance.
• Antonelli pointed out that McLaren's strong starts with the same Mercedes PU suggest the issue is team-specific.
• The changes will be tested in the sole practice session before Canadian GP qualifying.

What's next:

Antonelli hopes the upgrades will show immediate improvement. He also previewed Montreal's circuit as well-suited to this year's lighter, more agile cars, predicting more overtakes and action. With his teammate George Russell 20 points behind and Charles Leclerc a further 21 adrift, a clean start in Canada could solidify Antonelli's championship charge.