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Kimi Antonelli enjoys Easter break at Valentino Rossi’s VR46 ranch
Kimi Antonelli spent part of F1’s five-week break enjoying an Easter visit to Valentino Rossi’s famous VR46 Motor Ranch in Italy
Lydia Mee
Published: Apr 5, 2026, 9:49 PM
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Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes
Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images
Current Formula 1 championship leader Kimi Antonelli has spent part of his Easter break at Valentino Rossi's famed VR46 Motor Ranch in Tavullia, Italy.
After a strong start to the 2026 season, which has included back-to-back wins at the Chinese and Japanese Grands Prix, Antonelli has proven himself to be a title contender. With the F1 calendar taking a five-week break due to the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix, the Italian driver chose to go for an adrenaline-fuelled weekend at Rossi's ranch.
Antonelli shared footage on social media over the Easter weekend of his time at the seven-time MotoGP champion's dirt-track ranch alongside current MotoGP rider Marco Bezzecchi and members of the VR46 Academy.
While others took to the track, it looked as though the Mercedes F1 driver kept his feet on solid ground to watch the action as the others tore up the dirt.
Antonelli heads into the five-week break from F1 as the leader of the drivers' standings. He leads with 72 points with his Mercedes team-mate George Russell nine points behind in second with 63 points.
"It feels pretty good," Antonelli after taking the championship lead after the Japanese Grand Prix.
"Of course it's still early days to think about the championship, but we're on a good way. In the race, I had a terrible start – I just need to check what happened – but then I was lucky with the safety car to be in the lead. Then the pace was just incredible and it was a really nice second stint. I felt very good with the car and very pleased with that."
Ferrari's Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton follow in the drivers' standings in third and fourth.
The Miami Grand Prix will take place from 1-3 May at the Miami International Autodrome.
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