Kimi Antonelli was just 10 years old when his father Marco realized the boy sitting on his lap, operating the steering and gears of a Lamborghini sports car, might have exceptional racing talent. At the Adria circuit in north-east Italy, Marco strapped both himself and Kimi into the car, controlling throttle and brake while his son managed the rest.

Now 19, Antonelli is dominating this year's F1 championship in only his second season. His father, a former driver who never wanted Kimi to pursue racing due to his own struggles, watched in amazement as the youngster handled oversteer perfectly at 320km/h.

Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff saw Antonelli as his next F1 driver, potentially replacing Lewis Hamilton. When Hamilton moved to Ferrari in 2025, Wolff immediately contacted Marco Antonelli about putting Kimi in Formula 1. The team was impressed by how rapidly Antonelli adapted to F1 machinery during testing.

Despite early struggles including crashes at Monza and a confidence-shaking mid-season slump, Antonelli showed flashes of brilliance including pole position for the Miami sprint. As the season progressed, the team noted significant improvement, with signs pointing toward a breakthrough performance.