George Russell warns “Antonelli will make mistakes”, but also admits “he will keep me on edge”. George Russell gives verdict on his new Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli for 2025.

Mercedes’ talent
From winning the European Formula Regional Championship in 2023 to making a direct move to Formula 2, skipping Formula 3 and with two victories already in the junior category of the Circus. All this while awaiting the final season tests and with a future already secured in Formula 1 for the upcoming season, not with just any team, but with Mercedes, as the replacement for seven-time Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton, who will leave the Brackley team at the end of 2024 to join Maranello.

The F1 dream
A meteoric rise to the highest levels of motorsport, recently seen only with Max Verstappen, and with Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s ID card still showing just 18 years of age for the current Prema driver. A future thus awaits him in Mercedes, with George Russell waiting for him as his new teammate in the team that dominated the power unit era before  Max Verstappen’s arrival.

Errors and speed
George Russell, who has shared the garage with his fellow countryman Lewis Hamilton in recent Formula 1 seasons, expects errors from the newcomer for 2025, recognizing that the most important factor will still be speed: “I have always thought that with experience, you gain a lot over time — in terms of managing the weekend, the tires, the team. But I don’t think I’m faster now in dry conditions than when I was 17. You either have speed, or you don’t, and Kimi absolutely has it. There will be mistakes along the way, as happened to everyone. Every single driver has made mistakes in their first two years, and it will be more obvious for those at the front of the pack, but Kimi is exceptionally fast.” – the British driver pointed out.

George Russell thus does not rule out the potential of the Italian driver, to the point that the latter may put him in difficulty during the season: “Kimi is exceptionally fast, and I have no doubt that next year he will keep me on edge, and I look forward to taking on a new challenge. Three years of working with Lewis have been exceptional, but I can’t wait to see what we can do together starting next year.” – the Mercedes driver concluded.