For the longest time, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has been hesitant to hype 17-year-old Andrea Kimi Antonelli too much. The Austrian believes that such unnecessary hype may add too much pressure on the Italian teenager’s shoulders. However, Antonelli’s win during the F2 sprint race in Silverstone may have changed Wolff’s opinion. The 52-year-old believes that the Prema Racing driver is now ready to make the step up to F1.
While speaking to Gazzetta, Wolff said, “It was an important victory. I would say, a turning point for him. He literally dominated, and he’s not even eighteen years old. He was a second faster than the others, and he was always in control until the last corner. Kimi made a big step today, and I’m sure he will do great things in Formula 1”.
Antonelli was indeed impressive at Silverstone as he managed to win the sprint race in treacherous conditions that resulted in red flags and multiple restarts. With persistent rain and poor visibility on the track, Antonelli had to ensure that he made no mistakes.
17-year-old Kimi Antonelli overcame rain, red flags, and restarts to take a stunning victory in the Silverstone Sprint ☔️#F2 #BritishGP pic.twitter.com/ZLPPuMkZpD
— Formula 2 (@Formula2) July 12, 2024
The Italian ultimately crossed the finishing line more than eight seconds clear of Zane Maloney, who was the championship leader heading into the Silverstone race weekend. And what might help Antonelli further in securing a race seat in F1 next year is the way he has outperformed Prema Racing teammate Oliver Bearman this year.
Bearman secures F1 seat despite his failure to outperform Kimi Antonelli
Haas confirmed a few weeks ago that they had signed Bearman for the 2025 season as a replacement for the outgoing Nico Hulkenberg. The American team made such a decision despite the British driver’s failure to outperform Antonelli.
As things stand in the F2 championship, Antonelli is currently eighth and has scored 59 points. Meanwhile, Bearman is only 13th and has just scored 34 points.
With Antonelli outperforming his Prema teammate this year, it seems only a matter of time before one of the F1 teams decides to sign him. If Mercedes do not decide to sign him for next year, Antonelli could perhaps sign for one of their customer teams such as Williams, especially with Logan Sargeant underperforming massively.
