Few young drivers have garnered as much attention as Andrea Kimi Antonelli before even turning a wheel in Formula 1. The Mercedes Academy driver has been under the limelight for potentially replacing the outgoing Lewis Hamilton ever since the latter announced his move to Ferrari for 2025. Amid these speculations, Antonelli’s middle name — Kimi has also caught the attention of many.
There has been a popular belief that Antonelli was named after Kimi Raikkonen. The 18-year-old’s father, Marco Antonelli has been a big fan of Raikkonen. Thus, it could have influenced him to name his son after the last Ferrari world champion. However, that is far from the reality, as Antonelli himself revealed in an interview a couple of years ago.
F1 EXCLUSIVE:
Andrea Kimi Antonelli talks to Autosport about his rapid rise through the ranks and the prospect of succeeding Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes ️
FULL INTERVIEW: https://t.co/VoxWFSaLq9 pic.twitter.com/YS2L0Oj6Y7
— Autosport (@autosport) August 9, 2024
Speaking with Motorsport Italy, the Mercedes prodigy stated, “Actually, no. It’s a bit of a strange story. My parents wanted to give me a foreign middle name but they didn’t know which one.”
“In the end, Enrico Bertaggia, a friend of ours, came along and suggested Kimi because it went well with the first name and the last name. That’s how the name Andrea Kimi Antonelli was born.”, he added.
Marco Antonelli himself was a racer, mainly competing in DTM, GT racing, and Touring Cars. As a result, he helped groom his son’s racing talents a lot. Even the 18-year-old acknowledged his father’s contribution to his career, particularly in karting, till he got into the junior formulas.
Antonelli revealed how his father used to always give him advice on his mistakes in karting. He stated, “I always listen to him because I know that what he tells me is true and he wants to make me grow.”
During karting, the Italian prodigy didn’t get time to spend with his father. Cut to his stint in Formula 4 and that scenario changed with his father always being around as he owned an F4 team — AKM (Antonelli Motorsport).
