Andrea Kimi Antonelli

Andrea Kimi Antonelli will make his F1 debut with Mercedes in 2025 after replacing Lewis Hamilton.

Antonelli will have the opportunity to become F1’s youngest race winner should he win one of the opening three grands prix for Mercedes in 2025. The 18-year-old Italian wonderkid was given the nod over more experienced options, such as Carlos Sainz, with Mercedes boss Toto Wolff viewing Antonelli as his own Max Verstappen-like talent.

Antonelli’s raw talent was apparent from the outset, with back-to-back karting titles in Europe, before winning the 2022 Italian Formula 4 title with Prema. His success continued in 2023 as he clinched the Formula Regional European Championship, also with Prema.

He was fast-tracked to Formula 2, again with the Italian outfit, forming a super-team with Ferrari protégé Oliver Bearman. Prema failed to get to grips with the new F2 car as they struggled for results.

Antonelli still shone, beating Bearman in the final F2 standings, taking two victories as he finished sixth overall. Antonelli now becomes the first rookie since Hamilton in 2007 to be propelled into a leading team.