Andrea Kimi Antonelli Debuts In Mercedes F1 Car As Lewis Hamilton Replacement

Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who replaces Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes this season, made his 2025 F1 debut behind the wheel as a Mercedes driver. The 18-year-old rookie sensation was spotted in action driving the Mercedes W11 F1 car from 2020, with clips of his outing surfacing on social media.
Mercedes conducted the track session on the Circuito de Jerez in Spain, a report confirmed. Kimi Antonelli's signing was announced during the race weekend in Monza last year, months after the seven-time world champion announced his Ferrari signing.
Kimi Antonelli is driving the W11 today at the Jerez circuit. pic.twitter.com/dc4kcr0FeT
— Mercedes Hub (@MercedesF1_Hub) January 15, 2025
Team principal Toto Wolff told Auto Motor und Sport, as quoted by RacingNews365 above, that Kimi Antonelli has completed 9000 kilometers in Formula 1 machinery to date. He will partner leading driver George Russell this year.
Wolff was highly impressed by the F2 talent, even when Hamilton hadn't signed with Ferrari but was hesitant to replace Hamilton. The team boss revealed a fear of missing out on Kimi Antonelli, which led him to engage with him immediately after Hamilton announced his exit.
Speaking on the Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard podcast, Wolff explained:
"It was a curve ball thrown at us, and it still feels weird that he's gonna wear Ferrari overalls and drive the red car.
"It's just a bit surreal. But we had this 17-year-old in the pipeline [Kimi Antonelli].
"I didn't want to miss out on him, like I did with Max [Verstappen] back in the day, [when] I didn't have a car [for him], so that is all falling into place.
"And I can kind of get where he's coming from, because we weren't successful. Our car was not quick enough, certainly he had a mega offer on the table, [and] every Formula 1 driver wants to drive a Ferrari."
Thus, Hamilton's exit meant Wolff was relieved that he could bring Kimi Antonelli on board. He added:
"Absolutely. I couldn't make the decision from a personal standpoint - we owe him so much.
"And I didn't want to do the decision, as Mercedes, letting the greatest champion ever go.
"Maybe he felt that also, that's part of it, and he knew that Antonelli was in the pipeline. It was something that I almost had in the back of my mind, that that would happen."
However, considering the young Italian driver's first free practice session last season in Monza, where he showed impressive pace but eventually spun out and crashed into the barriers, Wolff acknowledged that Kimi Antonelli will make mistakes. He said:
"If you expect him to be on pole position in Melbourne, win the race and immediately fight for the championship, then the risk is big because that will not happen.
"If we approach it in such a way that the boy is 18 years old, very talented, but of course has to grow into it first and will make mistakes, then the risk is limited."