Source: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
[Saba Sports News] The Mercedes F1 team announced that 18-year-old Andrea Kimi Antonelli will represent the team in the 2025 F1 World Championship, replacing Lewis Hamilton, who is set to move to Ferrari. Yesterday, Mercedes CEO Toto Wolff revealed in an interview that he decided to sign Antonelli “five minutes” after Hamilton informed him of his departure. This decision was made even before Antonelli’s F2 debut. Toto stated that the team discussed various options internally and even considered Max Verstappen as a possibility. Although Verstappen has always been a desired driver for him, it depends on what happens within Red Bull Racing; the initiative is not in his hands. After reviewing Antonelli’s relevant data and race results, everything left a strong impression on him, leading to an immediate decision. Unfortunately, Antonelli did not meet Toto’s expectations. In the first practice session of the Italian Grand Prix, he lost control and crashed at Parabolica due to excessive speed and oversteering. Fortunately, Antonelli was unharmed and managed to exit the car on his own.