SAO PAULO -- Kimi Antonelli had a special gift from Mercedes on arrival at Interlagos on Thursday: T-shirts with his name on, accompanied with the title which will be uttered alongside it for the rest of time: Formula 1 world drivers’ champion.
Antonelli said it took a moment to digest what he was reading.
“This morning, the team gave me the T-shirts, the special T-shirts, and when I looked at it, I was like, ‘wow.’ It’s like, is this even real?” Antonelli said on Thursday, ahead of this weekend’s São Paulo Grand Prix.
Asked if it has sunk in to be world champion, he replied: “Not really, not really. It still feels surreal, you know.”
It has been a season of shattered records from Antonelli, who became Formula 1’s youngest champion at 20.
His third-place finish at the Mexico City Grand Prix was enough to clinch it and that result helped create the iconic visual of Antonelli being hoisted on the shoulders of the other two men on the podium with him: four-time world champion Max Verstappen and seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton.
Antonelli said he plans to seek both men out this week to convey his appreciation for the moment.
“I already framed the picture,” Antonelli said on Thursday. “I’ll definitely put it on the wall because it’s such a moment that, you know, who would have said I wouldn’t have expected to celebrate my title in that way.
“So definitely when they picked me up was the cherry on top of the cake and I will be thankful towards them for doing that because, first of all, to receive that from two incredible drivers who have done the history of the sport is very special and also even more special because it was real.
“It was something that they actually wanted to do. So, yeah, it was a very special moment and definitely I will, I hope I can see them again to thank them properly with a bit of calm because it was just very special.”
Antonelli had been ill in the lead up to his crowning race last Sunday, missing media day on Thursday in Mexico City and admitting after qualifying that he was tired and tense, having heard nothing but talk about the inevitability of his championship.
He admitted he still was not at 100% but hinted that the party since becoming champion have done a lot of work ridding him of his Mexico illness.
“I think all the viruses after Sunday night went away after the celebration,” Antonelli said, laughing. “I think they left my body! So I definitely feel better.”
Antonelli will be looking to add to his nine wins this weekend at Interlagos.
F1 still has four races left as things stand: Brazil this weekend, before a week off and a triple header of Las Vegas, Qatar and Abu Dhabi.