JAKARTA - Mercedes will appoint Kimi Antonelli as Lewis Hamilton's successor after failing to get Max Verstappen.
Antonelli will race for Mercedes in training on Friday, August 30, 2024, in Formula 1 (F1) the Italian Grand Prix, just five days after he turns 18.
The Mercedes junior racer finally got the opportunity to realize his dream of appearing at his hometown GP even in training sessions.
Antonelli received the green light from Mercedes boss Toto Wolff to replace Hamilton who will join Ferrari.
Wolff's failure to get Verstappen saw him speed up Antonelli's move into the first team next season.
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This is Wolff's second failure to recruit Verstappen. A decade ago, when Verstappen was 17 years old and on the rise, Wolff also failed to bring him to Mercedes.
At that time, Wolff already had Hamilton and Nico Rosberg so he couldn't give Verstappen a seat for the 2015 season.
"Kualifikasi dengan Kimi Antonelli di Monza (GP Italia) akan menjadi emosional karena kami telah mengikutinya sejak ia berusia 11 tahun."
"Having Italian children in competitive cars, everyone in Italy can be proud," Wolff told The Sun.
Antonelli has been part of the Mercedes junior team for five years. He started to gokart at the age of seven.
His career in climbing by winning the European Gokart CIK-FIA in 2020 and 2021. Antonelli then made his debut in the single seat for Prema Racing at the Italian F4 Championships, just three weeks after the age of 15.
Despite being young, he has won many trophies, including the F4 crown and the 2023 European Regional Formula Championships. Antonelli is currently also participating in the Formula 2 Championship for Prema.
"Since working together, Kimi has met all the requirements. Not only that, I really like him as a boy and personally."
"He has a fantastic family environment around him that helps him to always ground."
"He has great talent and can rely on important values from his family," said Wolff again.
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