2025 marked a big year for F1 fans. Lewis Hamilton left Mercedes after a 12-year stint and joined Ferrari. While fans supported the racer no matter what, Mercedes' new face was awaited. This was when a teenager, Andrea Kimi Antonelli stepped up into the vacant Silver Arrows seat alongside George Russell.
While the world is currently going gaga over Antonelli's hot looks and swift drifts, here's all you need to know about him.
Who is Kimi Antonelli?
Kimi Antonelli was born on August 25, 2006, in Bologna, Italy. He is the son of Marco Antonelli, a former racing driver who runs his own motorsport team, 'Antonelli Motorsports'. He began karting at the age of seven while racing for his dad's team. His first kart title came in 2015, in the Trofeo Easykart and Kart Grand Prix EasyKart 60 category.
In 2019, he joined Mercedes' junior programme after winning numerous titles and wins in the junior karting categories. His single-seater debut came in 2021, competing in the Italian F4, Formula 4 UAE Championship Trophy round and ADAC Formula 4. In total, he won 22 races from 35 starts. In 2023, he clinched the title at the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine (FRECA). The same year, he also won the Formula Regional Middle East Championship with three wins and four podiums from 15 races.
After impressive victories in lower categories, he was directly promoted to F2, skipping F3. He stepped into Formula 2 with PREMA for 2024 and won his first race at Silverstone in the Sprint Race. He won his second race in Hungary two weeks later, becoming the youngest multiple winner in series history.
Kimi Antonelli in F1
Antonelli became the 13th driver to represent Mercedes in F1 when he took the start for his debut race in Melbourne, Australia. In the process, he became the third-youngest driver ever to start an F1 race. By finishing P4 at Albert Park after a stunning drive through the field to P16, Kimi became the second-youngest driver to score an F1 point.
He went on to score points in his first three Grand Prixs, becoming the third driver since 1965 to do so. A few races later in Canada, he became the third-youngest driver in history to stand on an F1 podium by finishing P3 in Montreal. He scored his second Grand Prix podium at Interlagos in São Paulo by finishing P2, his best career result to date.
In Shanghai in 2026, he became the youngest F1 Grand Prix polesitter in the sport's history at 19 years, six months, and 17 days old. A day later, he became the second youngest Grand Prix winner of all time behind Max Verstappen.
However, he recently suffered his first major setback of the year. Antonelli had enjoyed strong growth through opening six rounds. He had to retire on June 14 after an electrical shutdown with only six laps remaining at the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix. This brought his run of five successive victories to an abrupt conclusion. Antonelli still retains a healthy points buffer of 41 to Hamilton and 50 to Russell. But his win is yet to arrive and is awaited by many.
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