“What happened [in FP1 at Monza] can happen to anybody when they reach F1. There’s a lot of pressure, a lot of stress, but he deserves this seat, he deserves an F1 position. I think he’s going to have a shining future.
“I’m happy that Mr. [Toto] Wolff gave him a chance and he’s in a really great environment. I’m really looking forward to 2025 and to see how he will perform.”
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While Liuzzi admits there will be plenty of pressure to deal with and some challenges to overcome, he feels the set up at Mercedes – and the advice Russell can offer – should help Antonelli cope with both factors.
“Russell is a really amazing team mate as a benchmark,” continued the former Red Bull, Toro Rosso, Force India and HRT driver. “Kimi can learn from George and take a lot of information [on board]. I think he will be quickly up to speed and he can be a really good team player.
“It won’t be easy, because obviously you start with a lot of pressure in a team like Mercedes, one of the top teams in the field, but I think if he’s smart enough to play well his cards, as I said before, he will have a really bright future.
“The speed is there, and that you cannot buy, so that’s the most important thing.”
