Antonelli scores damage-limitation fifth at 2026 Baku GP

The comparison to Piastri's 2025 Baku collapse is the real story here: a championship lead means nothing if a driver doesn't know how to protect it on a bad weekend. Antonelli's Q1 wall strike was a genuine error, but his race management — deliberately conservative, floor-damaged, reading the chaos around him — turned a potential points disaster into a 15-point loss rather than 25 or worse. What stands out is that this wasn't instinct; he consciously switched off his attacking mode early in the race when he recognised the pace and conditions didn't justify it. That kind of situational self-awareness, at 19 or however old he is, is exactly what separates title contenders from title winners.