Jannik Sinner Speaks Candidly About Kimi Antonelli: “There’s Something That Connects Us”

On the sidelines of the Allianz event in Milan, Jannik Sinner spoke about Formula 1 world champion and friend Andrea Kimi Antonelli, having nothing but wonderful things to say about him: “Motorsports is the only sport I watch that really gets me excited. It’s the only one. I’m a soccer fan, and I like tennis too, of course. It’s a job. As for any other sport—I watch basketball, which is an amazing sport—but it doesn’t move me at all.”

“The moment I watch the races, when I see the motorcycles, when I see Bagnaia, Bezzecchi… it gives me a rush, it gives me something, and what Kimi has managed to do this year is incredible for a twenty-year-old.”

“I’m talking about that natural ease above all—it seems normal, but it isn’t, because he came off a first season that was incredibly tough; he was at a point where he didn’t even know if he’d be re-signed the following year. But he worked really hard, he learned a lot—including how to handle certain situations—and he did it at a pace that only a phenomenon can match.”

“It really moves me to see this. So I know his father a little bit; I know him a little bit… They’re normal people—I mean, everything about them is normal; he’s not the type to show off or drive around in that kind of car. He’s very laid-back, and that also brings out the most down-to-earth side of a 20-year-old, and I think that’s what perhaps connects us.”

On the same occasion, speaking to reporters, the South Tyrolean also provided an update on his recovery, four months after the Wimbledon final, following which he hasn’t taken the court again due to his well-known knee problem: “I’m fine; we’re doing everything we can to get back on the court as soon as possible”. The star player from Sesto Pusteria arrived at this event at a turning point: Darren Cahill has stepped down as coach, and Magnus Norman is set to take his place.