Kimi Antonelli can be credited with a very strong start to 2025, already performing at a comparable level to teammate George Russell.
The 18-year-old was only a few tenths behind Russell in qualifying, executing a very impressive stint on the medium tyres to help put himself just 1.3 seconds behind the #63 car at the chequered flag.
For someone with such little experience, Antonelli deserves immense credit for adapting to F1 so quickly.
Antonelli receiving direct support from Bottas
To some extent, much of the hype surrounding Kimi Antonelli at the beginning of 2024 quietened down as the year progressed.
His Formula 2 campaign failed to capture the imagination of fans, finishing the season in 6th place.
Some would say the 18-year-old was a victim of his own success, with a very solid rookie campaign (including two victories) generally overlooked due to his prolific junior career.
Antonelli’s F2 campaign is especially impressive considering that he outperformed teammate Oliver Bearman – who has proven his calibre on numerous occasions.
In just a few weeks, however, the Italian driver has reminded the F1 world why he is one of the most highly anticipated youngsters in the sport’s history.
Aside from his work with Mercedes in pre-season testing, Antonelli has benefited from significant TPC (Testing of previous cars) running in recent years – getting thousands of kilometres of laps in F1 cars under his belt.
The resources Toto Wolff’s team have invested into the youngster goes one step further, with reserve driver Valtteri Bottas also participating in his development:
“I didn’t have a lot of confidence going into qualifying,” Antonelli said in Japan.
“But we kept working hard at it.
“Bono and George have been a great support, and Valtteri has been giving me plenty of advice.”
Adapting to F1
Indeed, the 10-time race winner explained over winter that working with Antonelli would be among his responsibilities in 2025.
Alongside his development duties, Bottas outlined that helping the 18-year-old develop would fall under his umbrella this season.
Considering the complexities of understanding F1, from optimising tyre temperature in qualifying to looking after the tyres on race day, the Finn’s presence could be instrumental in accelerating Antonelli’s progress.
Here are Bottas’ comments to Sky Sports about this topic earlier in 2025:
“I think mentor is not too far off [his role].
“When you’re a rookie, when you join the sport, there’s so many new things you’ve go to learn.
“Yeah, I can definitely help with that – my job is to try and help the team as best I can.”
A busy year for Bottas
Valtteri Bottas intends to use his position as Mercedes reserve driver to hit two birds with one stone.
On one hand, the 35-year-old’s year will consist of extensive simulator work and technical meetings with the engineering team at Brackley.
Simultaneously, he aims to leverage his position at Mercedes to be active in paddock conversations and negotiations ahead of 2026.
Cadillac are among the Finn’s most obvious targets for next year, as he looks to put himself back on the grid.
In the meantime, Bottas can be counted on to deliver for Toto Wolff’s squad in several areas over the coming months.
