Antonelli faces a ‘steeper learning curve than most of us’

Andrea Kimi Antonelli faces a tougher start to life in Formula 1 than most drivers, says Lando Norris.

Mercedes confirmed last month their junior driver will take over the seat Lewis Hamilton is to vacate at the end of the season. His ascent to F1 has been extraordinarily rapid, having bypassed Formula 3 to go straight into Formula 2 this year.

However Norris believes Antonelli has demonstrated his potential in the junior series. “He’s going to be in Formula 1 because he’s probably good enough to be there, and Toto [Wolff, Mercedes team principal] sees a lot in him.”

Antonelli, who turned 18 at the end of last month, lies sixth in the Formula 2 standings behind fellow rookies Gabriel Bortoleto, last year’s F3 champion, and former Mercedes junior Paul Aron. Last year Antonelli won three separate championships, including the Formula Regional European series, and the year before that he scooped the Italian and German Formula 4 crowns.

Lando Norris, McLaren, Zandvoort, 2024 — Like Antonelli, Norris won a clutch of junior titles

“He’s proven himself a lot in the junior categories,” Norris acknowledged. “Coming up through, I think it’s a big jump to go from F4 to F2. [That’s] a big jump, so it’s not probably been easy on him, but to go from F2 and then straight to F1, it’s a lot.”

Norris’ ascent to F1 was similar to Antonelli’s, though he didn’t skip F3. After victory in the MSA Formula (now British F4) series in 2015, he won three championships including the Formula Renault Eurocup (now Formula Regional Europe) the following year and was European Formula 3 champion in 2017. Norris then finished runner-up to George Russell – Antonelli’s 2025 team mate – in his sole season of F2 before joining F1 the following year.

He said Antonelli faces “a steep learning curve, steeper probably than what most of us have ever had, which always comes with pressure and things like that.

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“As long as he copes with that well, I’m sure, learning from one of the best here as his team mate, he’ll be up to speed in no time.”

Norris’ team mate Oscar Piastri arrived in F1 last year after winning championships in three consecutive seasons, then spending a year as a test driver for Alpine. He said Antonelli “seemed very quick” in his brief outing in first practice at Monza before he crashed. “Obviously his session didn’t last that long, but the laps he did seemed very competitive.

“He’s been very competitive in the junior categories as well. I know it’s been a bit of a tougher year for him in F2, but I think it’s been a tough year by Prema’s standard.

“I think he will definitely be competitive. Obviously he’s very young but Mercedes have clearly put him into a race-winning car for a reason and I’m sure he’ll be a great competitor next year.”