The world at Kimi’s feet
Toto Wolff is enjoying the historic championship lead of Andrea Kimi Antonelli, fresh from two consecutive victories between Shanghai and Suzuka. And while it is undeniable that on both occasions good fortune partly blessed the success of the young Italian driver – in China, Russell was knocked out by a qualifying problem when he seemed headed for pole, in Japan the Safety Car entering the track at the right moment undeniably helped him in his comeback after a poor start from pole position – raise your hand if you would have bet even a single euro on such a solid and mature performance after only three races from the start of his second season among the greats.
Perhaps not even Wolff himself, who has always been almost a surrogate father to the 19-year-old from Bologna, and who has defied criticism from the press and fans by choosing in 2025 to replace the legend Lewis Hamilton with a very young rookie. After the Suzuka race, the team principal said he didn’t want to hear even remotely about the possibility of a title win for Antonelli, amid regulatory changes, technical developments, and a new compression ratio verification system, but also considering the greater experience of a George Russell who will sooner or later emerge even in the internal comparison within the Mercedes garage. But, on the other hand, he didn’t deny the surprise of having to comment on his protégé’s F1 championship leadership.
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How Antonelli surprised even Wolff
“I think that when we decided to give him a seat – explains Toto Wolff speaking about Kimi Antonelli – a year and a half ago, we all hoped he could get on this winning trajectory, while considering the ups and downs that are to be expected from an 18-year-old driver in his first season in Formula 1. We hoped that it would be in the second year that success would materialize, and that is indeed how it is going. But, apart from that, if you ask me if I had ever predicted two wins in the first three races with Kimi, well the answer is no. In Japan, however, he was fast when he needed to be”. “And of course, luck was on his side, but I also believe that everything else, overall, determined Antonelli’s second consecutive victory”, concludes Toto Wolff.
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