Toto Wolff confesses Kimi Antonelli will make him ‘pull his hair out’ during rookie season at Mercedes
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff recognized that Kimi Antonelli's F1 debut could lead to some frustrating moments for the Brackley-based squad.
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Toto Wolff and Kimi Antonelli (images via IMAGO)
Mercedes has signed 18-year-old Kimi Antonelli to replace Lewis Hamilton this year. The Italian driver will be making his debut in F1 with the Silver Arrows. Team Principal Toto Wolff has admitted that this could create stressful situations within Brackley.
2025 will be an important year for the Silver Arrows. Wolff pointed out that George Russell will take the step up as team leader following Hamilton’s switch to Ferrari. Moreover, the Austrian billionaire reckoned that sometimes Kimi Antonelli will make the team want to pull their hair out.
It’s also going to be a year where George will settle in as being a senior driver and Kimi will rip our hair out.
Toto Wolff said, as reported by MotorsportWeek
Though, the Mercedes boss emphasized that his squad will have moments of brilliance as well. Toto Wolff asserted that he needed to manage expectations over the 18-year-old prodigy’s first season, which would help bolster the driver line-up for the 2026 rule change.
Other times we will see moments of brilliance. It’s a year of managing expectations for Kimi, preparing our driver line-up for 2026.
Toto Wolff added
Toto Wolff discards high risk scenario for Kimi Antonelli
Wolff made it clear that it will take time for Kimi Antonelli to get to grips with Formula 1. The 52-year-old insisted that the Silver Arrows do not expect him to be on pole and win the season opener in Australia this year. Such a scenario would substantially increase the risk, making Antonelli more prone to errors under pressure.
We want to prepare Andrea for 2026. If you expect him to be on pole in Melbourne, win the race and immediately in the race for the championship, then the risk is high. Because it won’t happen.
Toto Wolff noted
It seems that Mercedes understands it needs to be patient with its rookie talent. Kimi Antonelli has shown promising pace so far. However, the 18-year-old will need a nurturing environment at least at the start of the year to hit the ground running.
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Armaan Agarwal
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