He noted that his performance improved significantly after switching tires later in the event.
"Starting from P4, first two laps were really bad for me and then I really struggled with the brakes and I just lost a lot of time because I started to do mistakes," said Antonelli.
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The driver concluded that his final stint allowed him to showcase the true pace of the car.
"Then the second stint was a bit better and third stint was really, really strong, the pace was there, but of course fell a bit short," said Antonelli.
Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff addressed the performance of the sophomore driver, stating that the opening corners cost Antonelli a higher finish but viewing the mistakes as part of the learning process.
"The first few corners, this is where the race got lost," said Wolff.
Wolff defended the young driver's aggressive approach while highlighting that his desire to stay close to Russell ultimately impacted his race positioning.
"Full attack mode, missing braking in Turn 1, missing braking in Turn 3, missing braking in Turn 4," said Wolff.
The team principal expressed confidence that the qualifying flag misunderstanding would be a unique learning experience for the driver.
"But, as I said, this is exactly what I expect from him. Like yesterday, the yellow, that's never going to happen to him in his life again.
To not see whether it's a double yellow or a single yellow," said Wolff.
Wolff reiterated that the driver's positioning on the track directly affected his final placement.
"In the same way today, he just wanted to be right there on George.
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He wanted to be right behind him and that cost him a position or two," said Wolff.
