Kimi Antonelli offered to F1 rival for 2025 season, claims team boss

Sauber chief executive Mattia Binotto claims Mercedes offered Kimi Antonelli to the team in a loan move for the 2025 season.

The former Ferrari team principal added he “wasn’t involved in the decision” over the teenager’s future, as the young Italian instead stepped straight into a Mercedes seat for his rookie season.

Binotto: Mercedes ‘offered’ Kimi Antonelli to Sauber for F1 2025 season

When Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari announced a move for the seven-time World Champion for this season, much was made about his potential replacement at Mercedes and the candidates for the seat.

Team principal Toto Wolff said after Antonelli’s seat was announced that his mind was made up “five minutes” after news came through of Hamilton’s move to Ferrari.

“Obviously, we were discussing other options, and also didn’t discount the Max idea by looking at what happened at Red Bull,” Wolff said to media including PlanetF1.com at Monza last year, after confirmation of Antonelli’s seat.

“But, instinctively, this is the line-up with these two [Antonelli and George Russell] that I always wanted, bearing in mind the fast-tracking that we did with Kimi and everything related there too, but that was immediately what I wanted to do.”

The Italian teenager had skipped a junior category by moving from Formula 4 to Formula 2 machinery last season, but he was able to step up to an extent which convinced Wolff and Mercedes to place him in a factory seat from the off.

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Before that decision, however, Binotto claims the Silver Arrows had discussed a potential loan move for the team’s young driver prior to his Mercedes confirmation, though Sauber ultimately decided to sign Brazilian rookie and eventual Formula 2 champion, Gabriel Bortoleto, to partner Nico Hulkenberg, with that move announced later in 2024.

“They had offered him to us, but I wasn’t involved in the decision,” Binotto said of Antonelli to Italian publication Il Giornale.

“It’s been a difficult year for him because, regardless of the talent that everyone recognises he has, he is exposed to the media pressure of a top team like Mercedes.”

Antonelli has scored his maiden Formula 1 podium with Mercedes, alongside having taken an impressive Sprint pole in Miami earlier this season, but has found the going tougher of late as the year goes on.

Wolff backed Antonelli to succeed in time, however, telling media including PlanetF1.com after the Hungarian Grand Prix: “The car is generally giving more feedback to him, and he said that the weekend was transformational.

“Qualifying went wrong, but that happens to young drivers, and [in the race], hanging him out there for tyre survival was another part of the development that he needs to go through.

“He scored a point, he defended against [Isack] Hadjar behind, and I’m satisfied with that, hopefully going to get stronger in the second half of the year. So, on target.”

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