Kimi Antonelli is emerging as the clear favourite to join Mercedes in 2025, with Toto Wolff reiterating his belief in the youngster. Despite the numerous candidates available in the market, Mercedes are focused on evaluating Antonelli’s progress. Ultimately, the 17-year-old’s trajectory is what will inform the Brackley team’s decision.
Even before completing a lap in Formula 2, Kimi Antonelli was at the centre of numerous F1 headlines. This was partly thanks to Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff, who consistently mentioned the youngster’s potential to be in F1.
Wolff’s enthusiasm for the young Italian was obviously influenced by Lewis Hamilton’s departure, which presented the team with an important decision for the future.
At recent Grand Prix weekends, the Mercedes boss has tried to alleviate some of the scrutiny on Antonelli. He reminded the media that nothing is guaranteed for next season.
However, his comments to the media in Montreal continue to show that Antonelli is at the top of their list for 2025:
“We just want to focus on Kimi and the young drivers. This is our future, and this is what we have also told Carlos Sainz,” is what he told Sky Germany, as quoted by sportal.eu.
“Both Mick and Kimi, in the tests at Silverstone, completed the program we gave them, and the performance was exactly what we expected.”
MERCEDES FOCUS ON ANTONELLI PROGRESS
Mercedes are willing to wait until the end of 2024 before making their decision on next year. As outlined previously, this timeline is motivated by their interest in tracking Antonelli’s progress.
Of course, most drivers in the market will be unavailable by the time Toto Wolff makes his decision. Carlos Sainz is the most obvious example. Waiting until the end of 2024 for a seat he is not guaranteed is obviously an unwise move.
Therefore, the Mercedes team principal’s comments validate previous reports from formu1a.uno about Carlos Sainz. Sauber and Williams are the two main options at Sainz’s disposal. Mercedes is off the table.
This puts the call in Toto Wolff’s court to make a decision for 2025. As it stands, the Brackley-based outfit is focused on the trajectory of young Kimi Antonelli.
If Mercedes wanted to call upon an established option like Sainz, a decision would have already been made. In a few weeks, there will be very few big-name drivers available in the market.
This scenario is not unfamiliar to the Silver Arrows, who see 2025 as an opportunity to fast-track a young talent they have tremendous faith in.
