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Why Toto Wolff Has Full Confidence In Kimi Antonelli Despite Difficult Run of Results

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Luke-John Buckle | Last updated Sep 5, 2025 10:07 AM ET

Andrea Kimi Antonelli has endured a very difficult rookie season in Formula 1 amid a lot of pre-season focus while replacing seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton.

The Italian driver has made a series of errors on the track, which have somewhat overshadowed his blistering speed. He is also under the microscope at Mercedes, a team expecting to challenge for podiums and race wins.

Antonelli is just 19 years old and made his debut in Australia this year after just four seasons in car racing.

He and teammate George Russell will continue as Mercedes drivers for 2026. Team Principal Toto Wolff told Sky Sports F1 he is committed to Antonelli and emphasised the need to let him make errors.

He said: "I think what we've told him is that there's no doubting in Kimi. Kimi, because he came into the sport with great fanfare, the quickest ever in karting, great early junior series track record.

"When he comes in here, he blasts a lap out in the first two sectors that everybody says, Well, that is really mini Jesus. Then he puts it in a wall, which can happen. We probably didn't calibrate him in the right way.

"But then throughout the season started very strong. Then we had a car that was unpredictable and didn't give him any confidence. Then it was better, but mistake in FP1 in Zandvoort didn't set him on the right trajectory for qualifying.

"This time, he started it calmer here, and at the end, it was solid. I think most important is to just let him grow, let him do the mistakes. He's 19. Maybe that's the difference, too. When you see him, he's just a young kid."

Monza would be the perfect place to lift Antonelli's campaign

Antonelli has endured a mixed campaign so far; he has only scored one point in the eight European races, a 10th-place finish in Hungary.

Despite this, he has shown stunning speed and took pole position for the Sprint in Miami. He has also looked calm in Monza and effectively managed a chaotic race on debut in Melbourne to finish fourth.

The Italian driver's home race this weekend at Monza would be the perfect way to build confidence ahead of the final eight rounds. Antonelli won at the Temple of Speed multiple times in the junior series but crashed on his F1 debut 12 months ago.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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