Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff has revealed that he decided to promote Andrea Kimi Antonelli to Formula 1 just minutes after learning that Lewis Hamilton would be leaving for Ferrari.
The teenage sensation’s inclusion in Mercedes’ line-up for 2025 became was confirmed on Saturday at Monza, a day after Antonelli’s official F1 debut that ended with the young gun crashing into the barriers on just his second flying lap in Friday’s FP1.
But there was nothing to deter Wolff from assigning Mercedes’ 18-year-old protégé to Hamilton’s race seat from next season, even though he explored the idea of luring Max Verstappen to Brackley.
"I made up my mind five minutes after Lewis Hamilton told me that he's going to Ferrari," Wolff said.
"Obviously, we were discussing other options, and also kept the Max idea. We didn't discount it completely with looking at what happened at Red Bull, but instinctively, that is the line-up with these two that I always wanted.
"Bearing in mind the fast-tracking that we did with Kimi and everything related there too, but that was immediately what I wanted to do."
With the announcement, Mercedes has firmly established Russell and Antonelli as the cornerstone of its driver lineup for the foreseeable future.
"These two are the future," Wolff added. "They have been and will be Mercedes drivers, and therefore we have contracts with George and Kimi that go much longer, that are very complicated in terms of options, etc.
"This is a pressure cooker, but this is where we stand as a team today, we want to go with these two. The most important thing is to see how George and Kimi settle in and I see no reason at that stage not giving them the faith and the trust of going forward.”
©Mercedes
Wolff emphasized that Mercedes' commitment to Russell and Antonelli is unwavering, regardless of any future opportunities to sign Verstappen.
"What that means for the terms is something that we will discuss between ourselves, but we wouldn't have gone for the line-up with these two if we wouldn't believe 100% that they are the best choice for Mercedes,” commented the Austrian.
"So, what I appreciate also in dealing with them is just very straightforward, and I don't flirt outside.
"I got nearly caught out by the Lewis situation, but I have not entertained any discussions with any drivers when giving it all from the team to make it a success.
"And this is why all of our focus in the team is on George and Kimi. There's no discussion, there are no second thoughts about what we're doing in 2026 because now it's about 2024 and 2025.
"And if flirting outside happens, then these guys will know it at the same time when we have those discussions."
Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter
