Norris: “Antonelli has a learning curve faster than most drivers”

It is a first opportunity he will remember, even if it was short-lived. During the first free practice session of the Italian Grand Prix, Toto Wolff, boss of Mercedes, decided to entrust George Russell’s seat to his young talent, Italian Andrea Kimi Antonelli, future driver within the German team in 2025. However, the Prema driver lost control of his car in the Parabolica on his second lap, causing significant damage to Russell’s car. An incident that has sparked a lot of discussion and fueled some criticism, particularly because of his age and ability to handle the pressure of being in a Formula 1 in real conditions.

Nevertheless, even if his adventure within the discipline did not start in the best way, Lando Norris, McLaren driver, believes that the F3 champion has what it takes to perform well and has already proven his talent in junior categories. He’s going to be in Formula 1 because he’s probably good enough to be there, and Toto [Wolff, head of the Mercedes team] sees a lot in him. Moving from F4 to F2 is a big leap, so it probably wasn’t easy for him, but going from F2 straight to F1 is huge.

A meteoric rise to Formula 1.

In just three years in single-seater racing, Antonelli has achieved every driver’s dream: to drive a Formula 1 car. A chance he owes in part to his talent, as he didn’t get there by chance, having notably won numerous titles. After a first experience in a cockpit in 2021, the Italian went on to achieve victories and awards. In 2022, he successively won the German and Italian F4 championships before prevailing in FRECA in 2023.

Stunning performances that led Prema to move him directly to Formula 2 this year. After a rather shy start to the season, the Prema driver appears to be adapting more and more to the championship as the races go by and is emerging as the leader of the Italian team. He has scored 49 points more than his more experienced teammate, Oliver Bearman, who is also a future Formula 1 driver, and is currently in sixth place in the drivers’ standings.

A well-deserved opportunity according to both McLaren drivers

For Norris, his ascent to Formula 1 is a just reward for the results he has achieved. He has also praised the qualities of the Italian driver, especially his ability to adapt, quickly getting up to speed, notably during his session at Monza just before his crash. He is facing a steep learning curve, probably steeper than most of us have experienced, which always brings pressure, explained the Briton to the media including RaceFans, who had a fairly similar career, having only completed one season in European Formula 3 in 2017 and in Formula 2 in 2018 before joining Formula 1 with McLaren.

At the same time, he advises the Italian to face the many challenges he will have to face, especially that of managing the pressure of the media and fans in case of poor performance. As long as he manages this correctly, I am sure that by learning alongside one of the best as a teammate, he will quickly be up to speed.

Oscar Piastri, teammate of Lando Norris at McLaren, had similar words towards Antonelli, considering him very fast during his brief session at Monza and thinking that he will quickly find a place among the best drivers on the grid. For that, the Italian will be able to benefit from the support of the German team and his future teammate George Russell, who estimated that Kimi Antonelli will quickly be on pace with the best throughout the Grand Prix races and the experience he will be able to gather alongside him.

« He was very competitive in the junior categories as well. I know it has been a bit more challenging year for him in F2, but I think it has been a tough year by Prema standards. I believe he will definitely be competitive. He is very young, but Mercedes has clearly placed him in a car capable of winning races for a reason, and I am sure he will be an excellent competitor next year, revealed Oscar Piastri.

Before joining Mercedes, the Italian driver still has to finish his Formula 2 season in order to gain more experience, which will be very useful for his debut next year in Formula 1. However, Antonelli should nevertheless find the other seat at Mercedes during a free practice session, probably at the Mexican Grand Prix in a few weeks.