Kimi Antonelli admits he was worried Mercedes would send him to Alpine amid rookie struggles

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F1 championship leader Kimi Antonelli says he genuinely feared for his seat at Mercedes at the lowest point of his rookie season.

The European stretch of the season proved extremely difficult for Antonelli in his first year. In a 10-race sequence between May and September, he suffered four DNFs and five qualifying exits.

Antonelli was sitting on 48 points after a sixth-place finish at the Miami GP, but had only increased his tally to 66 by the time F1 visited Azerbaijan three and a half months later.

What did you think of Kimi Antonelli after his rookie season with Mercedes?

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Kimi Antonelli: Mercedes weren’t denying Alpine rumours

Speaking to Motorsport Italia, Antonelli said his ‘darkest’ moment was the Belgium Sprint weekend, when his results in competitive sessions made for bleak reading: 20th, 17th, 19th, 16th.

The teenager, who was visibly emotional in the Spa media pen, was aware of rumours that his seat was at risk.

There was talk that Mercedes could loan Antonelli to Alpine or Williams, their engine customers. This would have been an admission that he wasn’t ready for a top seat.

Antonelli started to doubt himself, particularly because Mercedes weren’t ‘denying’ the rumours. Toto Wolff insists he always maintained his faith in Lewis Hamilton’s successor, but he was also interested in Max Verstappen.

Kimi Antonelli is going for his sixth straight win at the Barcelona GP. Who’s your pick for the top step of the podium?

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“I’m much less stressed than I was last year,” he said. “Today I feel like I’ve proven something and have more control over the situation.

“I know I’ll be in Formula 1 next season too, whereas last year there was a moment, during the Belgian Grand Prix weekend, when everything around me seemed darker.

“I went through a tough period, but coming through it has made me mentally stronger, as a driver but above all as a person.

“At a certain point in the season, things on the track weren’t going as I’d hoped, and on top of that, rumours began circulating about a possible move to Alpine or Williams – rumours that weren’t being denied.

“In situations like that, it’s inevitable that doubts arise, with the risk of falling into a downward spiral.”

• READ MORE: Jolyon Palmer saw shades of Sebastian Vettel ‘in his prime’ from Kimi Antonelli at Monaco Grand Prix

Had Mercedes loaned Antonelli to a midfield team to continue his development, he would never have made F1 history. The Italian has demolished several ‘youngest ever’ records this season.

No driver had the led the championship before their 22nd birthday until Antonelli took over from George Russell at the Japanese GP. He’s now on a run of five straight victories.

66 points clear at the top of the standings, he’s increasingly likely to be the world champion.

After Antonelli made arguably the single biggest performance leap F1 has ever seen, those 2025 doubts have already been forgotten.