Carlos Sainz has told Andrea Kimi Antonelli to calm down after the Mercedes driver called him an idiot on team radio during opening practice at Spa-Francorchamps. The dispute came after a close moment between the pair in Belgian Grand Prix practice, with both drivers reacting to what they felt was a near-miss over track position.
The incident unfolded on Friday in Belgium, when Antonelli and Sainz found themselves squabbling over space at Spa. Antonelli’s frustration was clear in the moment, while Sainz’s immediate response to Williams was just as direct as he questioned what the young driver was doing.
Sainz: “I think he should calm down a bit”
Sainz said he did not believe he had simply blocked Antonelli, and suggested the situation was made more difficult by the way the cars behave when pushing for clean air and track position. He also made it clear that he felt the radio comment crossed a line.
“I don’t know what Antonelli was doing with me. He throw the car into me, I don’t know why…,” Sainz said.
He added: “I think he felt like I impeded him - I don't feel like I did,” before pointing out that the current Straight Mode style of running can make these moments harder to judge in practice. “Maybe he felt like I could have got out of the way in a better way,” he said. “But I don't think he should call me an idiot either, on the radio, I think that's forbidden, to swear and insult a rival - so I think he should calm down a bit.”
Antonelli: “It was quite dangerous”
Antonelli later gave a more measured assessment after topping second practice, admitting that his reaction in the heat of the moment was not ideal. He said the situation had felt risky from inside the car, especially as he was forced to abort the lap.
“not the best,” Antonelli said of his radio comment.
He explained: “I mean, he backed off out of a fast corner, you exit in seventh gear, and I had to abort and it was quite risky,” before adding: “So of course I was not happy with it and of course what I said probably, in the heat of the moment, is not the best - but it was quite dangerous.”
The bigger picture is that Antonelli arrived at the Belgian Grand Prix weekend as the championship leader, holding a 25-point advantage over George Russell. That makes every practice run feel more significant, even if the clash with Sainz was only a brief flashpoint on Friday.
For now, both drivers appear to have moved on quickly enough. But the exchange was a reminder that at Spa-Francorchamps, even a practice incident can sharpen the temperature around a team weekend.
