Andrea Kimi Antonelli: Why Is There So Much Hype Around This Mercedes Junior Driver?

The 17-year-old Italian young racing driver, Andrea Kimi Antonelli, son of former racing driver, Marco Antonelli, has generated a lot of hype in the racing world. But why is it that some young drivers attract unparalleled attention to themselves? Is it just because of their exceptional driving skills despite their young age? Is it because they have won more than their peers? Or is it because their teams manage them more unconventionally? The right answer is a combination of all these factors.

You see, Formula 1 teams are always on the lookout to recruit exceptional young drivers, whom they can then help climb the Formula ladder eventually leading up to Formula 1. Drivers like Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc, George Russell, etc, all had that exceptional hype associated with them as they made their way through the feeder series. However, the current Mercedes Junior driver, Andrea Kimi Antonelli, is turning heads for a very specific reason, and the hype surrounding him is going through the roof.

Andrea Kimi Antonelli has taken the Formula world by storm

For a young driver dreaming of making it to Formula 1 one day, they have to walk, or in this case, drive a very particular path. To get noticed by the top teams, the young drivers have to perform exceptionally well and win multiple karting championships before they can make their single-seater debut in Formula 4 championships.

In the case of Kimi Antonelli, he got into the world of karting when he was 8. In his next 8 years of competing in multiple Karting Cups until 2021; he won the championship 13 times, came in as runner-up 6 times, and secured third place 6 times. His remarkable skill behind the wheel caught the attention of Mercedes in 2017, leading up to his signing and subsequent development within the Mercedes junior program.

With his talent, it was only a matter of time before he got promoted to the single-seater Formula 4 championships, which is the next stepping stone after karting. He made his debut in the Italian Formula 4 championship in 2021, while still competing in the WSK and CIK-FIA karting championships.

Despite entering the championship in the fifth round, Kimi Antonelli managed to secure a respectable 10th place in the championship, bagging 3 podiums along the way. In 2021, he also took part in the Formula 4 UAE Championship – Trophy Round and claimed the pole position, eventually finishing 3rd in the race.

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Although Kimi did well in his first appearance in F4, it won’t be until he went full-time in a single-seater that we got a real glimpse of his talent.

Kimi enters the Formula World full-time in 2022

It was in 2022 that we really got to see Antonelli’s true dominance. Unlike F3, F2, and F1, there are multiple F4 and Formula Regional Championships at national and regional levels. In his first full-time Italian F4 appearance with Prema Racing, Antonelli won the championship by claiming victory in 13 out of the 20 races. He also competed in the ADAC Formula 4 Championship, claiming the title with an impressive 9 wins out of the 15 races. He also won the FIA Motorsport Games Formula 4 Cup in 2022.

In 2023, Mercedes promoted Kimi Antonelli to Formula Regional. Although it is a conventional step in the Formula ladder to go from Formula 4 to Formula Regional, teams usually promote exceptional drivers directly to F3, skipping the regional feeder series. And so, this was a somewhat unusual move from Mercedes. However, the next move from the Brackley-based squad will turn out to be even more unusual.

Unsurprisingly, Kimi Antonelli claimed the title in both the Formula Regional Middle East Championship and the Formula Regional European Championship. However, this time he only won 8 out of the combined 35 races on his way to both titles compared to 22 wins out of 35 in Formula 4. He also drove 2 out of the 8 races in the Italian GT Sprint Championship – GT3 Pro and claimed one victory finishing a respectable 8th in the championship.

Kimi Antonelli will race in Formula 2 in 2024

The decision from Mercedes to promote Andrea Kimi Antonelli directly to Formula 2, skipping Formula 3, altogether turned a lot of heads in the F1 paddock. You see, it’s more common for teams to promote their drivers from F4 to F3, skipping the Formula Regional. Because F3 is a crucial step to help the drivers build up to the level of F2. On the contrary, promotion from Formula Regional directly to F2 is much more rare.

To add to that, Kimi Antonelli will be driving alongside Ferrari‘s young British talent, Oliver Bearman for Prema Racing, which is one of the most sought-after seats in Formula 2. However, since Kimi has been with Prema Racing from the very start, we can be sure that he will get all the support necessary to excel in F2.

Mercedes will also plan to give Antonelli some time in the Formula 1 practice sessions, where, according to new rules, each team has to give seat time to their young drivers in at least one Free Practice session in the season. However, what’s even more bizarre about Kimi Antonelli is that he already has enough super-license points to take part in Formula 1 if he was 18 years old. And the guy hasn’t even raced in F3 or F2 yet. That’s enough to justify the hype around the young Italian talent of Andrea Kimi Antonelli.

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Do you think the Italian will make it to Formula 1 in 2024 after just one year in F2? Teams lower down the grid will surely be keeping their eyes on how he performs in 2024. Share your insights down below in the comments.

Editorial Disclaimer: The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of EssentiallySports.