Kimi Antonelli leaves Ferrari door open despite Mercedes title charge

Kimi Antonelli isn’t ruling out racing for Ferrari in the future, but for now the Italian is fully committed to winning with Mercedes.

The Italian leads the Drivers’ Championship standings after five races, 43 points clear of his teammate George Russell, with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc a further 13 off the pace.

Kimi Antonelli addresses Ferrari links amid Mercedes success

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Last weekend, Antonelli was presented with the prestigious Lorenzo Bandini Trophy, which is awarded to an individual or team for their achievements in Formula One.

The Italian drove his father Marco Antonelli’s Mercedes-AMG GT3 to the event in Brisighella, and addressed the crowd.

Antonelli has made history this season as the youngest-ever championship leader at just 19 years of age. He also wrote his name in the record books as the first driver to win his first four grands prix in succession.

He leads the Drivers’ standings by 43 points ahead of his Mercedes teammate George Russell.

Antonelli’s current Mercedes contract expires at the end of this season, with the Italian having agreed a one-year extension for 2026. He, however, is not expected to leave Mercedes next year as team principal Toto Wolff considers him to be the future of the Brackley squad.

However, when – or if – he does leave the team, Antonelli is not ruling out signing with Italy’s F1 team, Ferrari.

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“Ferrari is a huge team with an incredible following and will remain in history forever,” he said during the award ceremony.

“But I am a Mercedes driver, and my goal is to win with Mercedes. They gave me a great opportunity from a young age, supported me throughout my entire journey, and I feel a duty to give my best for this team.

“Then, we’ll see.”

A move to Ferrari would be a huge story, not just for Formula 1, but for Italy.

Giancarlo Fisichella was the last Italian to race for Ferrari, spending five races with the team in 2009 when he replaced Luca Badoer, who was standing in for the injured Felipe Massa.

But while Antonelli’s success in Formula 1, with his four grand prix winning streak beginning at the Chinese Grand Prix, has excited former Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo, the Italian admits it’s disappointing that he isn’t racing for Ferrari.

“His victory excited me,” the 78-year-old told Corriere della Sera in March.

“He is a 19-year-old boy who is constantly improving. He had had problems in the starts, yet he did not lose heart. He went to the front and led without uncertainty, risking only at the end.

“He showed maturity and coolness, not typical of an Italian, and especially not of one of his age. He has his feet on the ground, I hope he will always stay like this, the premises are all there.

“But it bothered me a bit to see him in a Mercedes.”

But, he conceded, “taking someone like Antonelli and putting him in Ferrari immediately would have destroyed him. He would have had gigantic pressure.”

Antonelli is chasing a fifth grand prix win on the trot this weekend in Monaco, however, he reckons this one could go the way of Ferrari.

“I think Ferrari’s going to be the team to beat in Monaco,” the championship leader told Sky Sports.

“It’s going to be very interesting how we do there, but for sure Ferrari is the favourite because obviously also with that winglet they have in the back, it’s giving them a lot of downforce at low speed.

“For sure it’s going to be interesting, but I’ll try to do my best, to put myself in the best position and to achieve the best result possible.”

Mercedes has not won the Monaco Grand Prix since Lewis Hamilton’s 2019 success, with McLaren the defending Monaco champions after Lando Norris converted his pole position into a first Monaco win last year.

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