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Toto Wolff has discussed the one risk he took with signing Kimi Antonelli straight from F2 to Mercedes.
At the Chinese Grand Prix, Kimi Antonelli was able to prove all of his critics wrong as he secured his first Formula 1 win in dominant fashion.
The Italian driver had secured pole position on Saturday afternoon, which he was able to convert into victory, which came after 26 Grands Prix as a Formula 1 driver.
When Antonelli was signed straight from Formula 2 to Mercedes, there were many critics who believed Toto Wolff had made the wrong decision by signing a teenager to partner George Russell.
However, during his short time as a Formula 1 driver, Antonelli already has a Grand Prix victory, four Grand Prix podiums, and a Sprint Race podium.
Kimi Antonelli becomes the second youngest Grand Prix winner in F1 history! The first of many for the youngster? 🤔
Signing Kimi Antonelli straight to Mercedes was never ‘a risk’
During an interview with Gazzetta, Wolff was asked about his decision to bring Antonelli into Formula 1 at such a young age.
When it was first announced that Mercedes had signed Antonelli to replace Lewis Hamilton, eyebrows were raised due to the Italian’s age, but Wolff believes it was never ‘a risk’ to sign Antonelli to Mercedes.
Wolff said, “I’ve been in this business for many years, and there’s always criticism. It often comes from people who don’t have all the facts. There aren’t many drivers capable of winning everything right from karting, like Kimi. I’ve seen him develop up close, so I never saw the decision to sign him straight away for Mercedes as a risk.
“The only danger with young drivers is that they may not be ready to handle the pressure of Formula 1, but Antonelli has always had an excellent support structure and a model family around him. We try to help him develop in a successful environment, and his mum and dad know motorsport very well. They can give him good advice.”
Kimi Antonelli’s win in Shanghai makes him the second youngest Grand Prix winner in F1 history. Will Max Verstappen’s record ever be broken?!
Let us know in the comments below!
Mario Andretti warns Toto Wolff about managing Antonelli and Russell
Russell won the opening race of the season at the Australian Grand Prix and the Sprint Race in China, which was followed by Antonelli’s victory in China. After this early success from Mercedes, Mario Andretti warned Wolff about managing the two drivers throughout the 2026 season.
Andretti said, “Toto Wolff has quite a job on his hands now. How do you balance the situation? It’s a beautiful thing… At one point, you have to favour one driver.”
In a previous interview from 2025 during Drive to Survive, Wolff had already hinted at which driver he would favour if Russell and Antonelli were locked in a title fight.
Wolff said, “We have a clear lead driver in George. And then you have Kimi, as a rookie, who has shown that he has the potential…”
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