Toto Wolff drops biggest Kimi Antonelli hint yet as Mercedes rumours heat up

Ahead of his first centre-stage run in a Mercedes F1 car, Toto Wolff has given the biggest hint yet that Kimi Antonelli will race for Mercedes next season as putting him straight into a Mercedes F1 car “feels right”.

Antonelli will make his F1 debut at Monza on Friday when he takes part in FP1, amidst speculation that it won’t be long before Mercedes confirm he’s the driver replacing the Ferrari-bound Lewis Hamilton.

Kimi Antonelli is being widely tipped to replace Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes

A Mercedes junior since 2019, Wolff has often talked up Antonelli as Mercedes’ future.

However, left a driver short for 2025 after Hamilton announced he would be leaving for Ferrari, the Mercedes team boss initially made a play for triple F1 World Champion Max Verstappen.

But with the Dutchman staying at Red Bull, at least for 2025, Mercedes could yet promote Antonelli from Formula 2 straight into a Mercedes F1 cockpit.

It’s a slightly different path to the one taken by Mercedes’ last junior driver, George Russell, who was placed with Williams for three years before stepping up to Mercedes.

Wolff, while adamant he’s not confirming Antonelli as his newest F1 driver, says it “feels right” that he should go directly to Mercedes.

“Without pre-empting too much about next year’s drivers, in a way, when such talent comes up, it’s not right either to park someone, or place someone with another team,” he told the BBC.

“With George it was probably a year too long with Williams. But then also we didn’t really have any space before.

“Let’s see what happens, but in a way I think we took the right decision for the benefit of Lewis, the team’s benefit, Kimi. It feels right.”

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Ahead of Antonelli’s FP1 run, Wolff has urged the media – “especially in Italy” – not to put pressure on the 18-year-old’s shoulders.

“You will only find out if someone is ready for F1 when you throw them in the cold water,” he said. “I think Kimi is prepared. We are doing the utmost to give him testing days.

“We are not sitting with him in the car. He needs to do it. He has the talent, the intelligence, the ability, all of it to do it well. And we need to provide an environment, if he was in the car, where he can learn and develop.

“You’ve got to give young drivers time. George is a formidable driver, one of the best. You can’t expect an 18-year-old to sit in the car and outperform him. That’s not going to happen. Impossible.

“And that’s why we need to make sure the press – especially in Italy – wouldn’t be putting too much pressure on him.”

George Russell would welcome ‘exceptionally fast’ Kimi Antonelli

Meanwhile, Russell has said he would welcome Antonelli as his newest F1 team-mate, saying the Italian is “exceptionally fast”. He’ll hand his W15 over to the Mercedes protege for FP1.

“I see him every time he’s racing F2. We always keep a close eye on how he’s getting on, watching all of the races,” Russell said.

“We did a test together in Silverstone a couple of months ago, so that was a great opportunity for him to get behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car.

“He was exceptionally fast, so I’m sure if he were to get a drive in Formula 1, I’m sure he’d do a great job.”

“Kimi’s an exceptional driver, such an amazing track record,” he added. “In his junior series, always destined to be a Formula 1 driver.

“If it were to be him, I think it sort of shows the strength also of the Mercedes junior program and reminds me a bit of my journey, starting off as a young kid, walking through the doors in Formula 3 and climbing the ladder. And it would be a great story for the team, but who knows?”

As for his own future, he told the media including PlanetF1.com that he’s yet to talk about an extension with Wolff amidst speculation he could be the one on his way out if Mercedes eventually manage to sign Verstappen.

“It’s something we have not spoken about at all, at all,” Russell said. “To be honest, I’ve been with this team for so, so long, I’m managed by Mercedes, and we’ve always said, you know, we will be continuing together for the indefinite future.

“So, you know, there’s a lot of conversations that are going on which are quite entertaining to read, but from my side, I’m not focused on any of that. I’m just focused on my driving and excited to see who will be my partner next year.”

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