Kimi Antonelli has emerged as the next big thing in motorsport. The Mercedes academy driver has won four single-seater titles in the last two seasons, underlining his potential.
Mercedes believe that he can be the next Max Verstappen or Charles Leclerc. And 2016 world champion Nico Rosberg has called him ‘a superstar of the future’.
Antonelli has made a steady start in Formula 2, entering this weekend’s races at Imola ninth in the standings. But he produced his strongest performance yet in the Australia feature race last time out, qualifying second and finishing fourth.
Williams have been so impressed by what they’ve seen from the 17-year-old that they’ve made a special request to the FIA. They want him in the car before his 18th birthday, which coincides with the Dutch Grand Prix in late August.
As it stands, FIA superlicence rules prevent drivers racing in F1 before they reach that milestone. The sport’s governing body made that change after Verstappen’s debut as a 17-year-old in 2015, though the Dutchman himself is opposed.
But Williams are seeking dispensation to get Antonelli behind the wheel in place of Logan Sargeant. They previously benefitted from a three-year relationship with Mercedes driver junior George Russell.
Senior F1 sources rule out early Kimi Antonelli debut
In a Q&A for BBC Sport, one fan asked Andrew Benson which drivers were most vulnerable to dropping off the grid midway through the season. And one of the names he picked out was Sargeant.
The question right now isn’t whether the American loses his drive. It’s whether he loses it before the end of the campaign.
Antonelli is the desired replacement for Williams, but according to ‘senior sources’, there’s ‘next to no chance’ of him receiving permission to enter F1 before he turns 18. It looks like the FIA aren’t about to grant an exemption.
Still, there’s a real possibility that the Italian could make his debut at his home race in Monza. He will just have to show patience.
Mick Schumacher and Kimi Antonelli featured in Mercedes test at Silverstone last week
Mercedes have been putting Antonelli through a rigorous testing programme behind the scenes. The rules prevent him from driving any car from the last two years, but they’re still valuable opportunities.
He began with a run in the 2021 car at the Red Bull Ring in Austria. Things didn’t go entirely to plan as adverse weather severely limited what he could do on the first of the two days.
His next step was Imola, this time in the 2022 machinery. On day one, he matched the lap times of Lewis Hamilton in the same machinery (albeit in different conditions).
And on the second day, he ‘surprised’ everyone with his performance on a medium-tyre run and the speed of his adaptation. Will Buxton called it a ‘stunning’ display.
Most recently, Antonelli was in action at Silverstone last week. While reserve driver Mick Schumacher gathered long-run data, Mercedes allowed the teenager to chase lap time ‘to his heart’s content’.
They’ve kept his lap times secret, perhaps in an attempt to limit the mounting pressure on Antonelli. But they will be able to draw plenty of conclusions behind the scenes as they assess whether he’s ready to replace Hamilton at Mercedes in 2025.
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