In 2025, Kimi Antonelli makes his debut in Formula 1 and immediately becomes George Russell’s partner at Mercedes, although the 18-year-old Italian driver does not have much experience in youth series. However, Toto Wolff and his team decided to take the risk because they believe in his potential.
“When I tested in cars from previous years, the team was impressed with how quickly I could reach the limit, how quickly I started doing laps in the time Mercedes needed,” Kimi told Gazzetta dello Sport. – But I must admit that the most difficult thing for me during the tests was to show a stable race pace.
However, I managed to improve my pace considerably during the last two-day tests in Spa, after which Mercedes decided to sign a contract with me. They wanted to put me behind the wheel as early as 2025, but first they had to make sure I could correct these shortcomings. During the tests in Spa I made a noticeable step forward and this convinced Mercedes.
Even before the summer holidays I had a meeting at the Mercedes base with Toto Wolff, my engineer and other people, and they told me that I should drive for this team in 2025. It was a nice moment.
I feel like I’m ready for Formula 1. I don’t think there will be any problems with the speed. The only thing you need to seriously work on is how to best structure your work throughout the entire race weekend, and how to learn all the necessary procedures. In short, I still have a lot to learn.
If I can win some races, my dream will come true. This is exactly the goal I have set for myself, although it will not be easy because all the teams have fast cars. If I’m on the podium that’s good too, but the main goal is to get a few wins.”
Source: F1 News
I am Christopher Clyde, an experienced journalist and content writer with a passion for sports. I have been writing about Formula 1 news for the past five years and am currently employed as an author at athletistic.com, one of the top sports websites in the US.
