After starting in the top 10 for the first time, Andrea Kimi Antonelli crossed the line in China in eighth place but was later promoted to sixth after both Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton were disqualified.

That means Antonelli has now finished in the top six in his first two full Grands Prix, following his fourth-place result in Australia. He also picked up more points with a seventh-place finish in the sprint race and now sits fifth in the drivers’ standings with 22 points.

But the race in Shanghai was far from easy for Antonelli. After the chequered flag, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff revealed that the Italian had driven most of the race with serious damage to his car.

“Kimi had extensive floor damage,” said Wolff, quoted by RacingNews365.

“We don’t actually know why, whether he ran over Charles’ [Leclerc] end-plate, but he had massive holes in the floor and titanium streaks that were gone. So considering that he had a car that was severely impaired, finishing eighth, holding onto it, and not complaining, just getting on with the job shows the potential and the maturity the young man has.”

Despite the problems with the car, Antonelli still made a big impression. He was voted Driver of the Day by the fans, which even left him surprised. When Wolff told him about it over team radio, Antonelli replied with a laugh: “That’s weird.”

Later, Antonelli admitted that he hadn’t even been told about the damage during the race. “Yeah, they didn’t want to tell me so I wouldn’t panic, probably,” he told Sky F1.

“I could feel something was weird from Lap 1. Yesterday was front limitation, front left, and today, I was really struggling with the rear for the whole race, which was quite unusual. I found it really weird.”

He noted that it was a difficult race overall and explained how he tried to manage the problems. “I was really trying to save the rears as much as possible,” he added. “But, now it’s time to reset and come back stronger in Japan.”

When asked if he felt proud of what he achieved despite the damaged car, Antonelli replied: “Yeah, now, I need to see how much was that damage.”