17-year-old Antonelli linked with Lewis Hamilton's Mercedes F1 seat

Lewis Hamilton shook the Formula 1 world to its core ahead of the 2024 season, announcing his move from Mercedes, his home for 12 seasons, to Ferrari for 2025.

The German team has many star-studded candidates as possibilities to replace Hamilton and lineup alongside George Russell. Carlos Sainz and Fernando Alonso have both been reported as potential new recruits.

However, 17-year-old Andrea Kimi Antonelli may also be a target for Mercedes and has built up a stellar CV during his junior career.

The Italian is backed by Mercedes and won the ADAC F4 Championship and the Italian F4 title in 2022 prior to sweeping all before him in FRECA last year.

Antonelli is so highly rated that he jumped straight from Formula Regional to FIA Formula 2, skipping FIA F3. To become a Mercedes Formula 1 driver, the Italian needs to conquer the highly competitive championship, which is the final step on the road to F1.

The grid is brimming with talent, backed by Formula 1 teams and drivers ready to grab any opportunity to reach the highest level.

Despite all the attention surrounding the teenager, the Mercedes junior has yet to score a podium finish during the campaign's opening three rounds.

Antonelli drives for the Italian team PREMA. He and teammate Oliver Bearman struggled at the season opener in Bahrain, with the former scoring just one point over the weekend.

It's a measly return for an outfit that led Charles Leclerc and Mick Schumacher to the title in 2017 and 2020, respectively. Both drivers went on to race in Formula 1.

Italy's lack of recent success in F1 could put even more pressure on the youngster who, in 2021, was still racing in go-karts.

The nation has a storied history in motorsport, but no Italian has won a world championship since Alberto Ascari took his second title in 1953. 

To help Antonelli become familiar with Formula 1 machinery, he will undertake an extensive testing programme. This will begin with a two-day test in the 2021 Mercedes W12 from 16 April at the Red Bull Ring in Austria.

Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff admitted his Italian protege has more to learn but is confident he can reach the pinnacle of motorsport.

“He needs to learn, he needs to be more, let’s say, in the shadows to be able to develop, understand what to do and whether he’s going to be in Formula 1 if everything goes to plan, but I don’t know if that is next year or whether it’s with us or someone else,” Wolff said via Formula1.com.

Antonelli is undoubtedly a huge talent, as his high level of driving in his short career so far proves.

The FIA F2 Championship is one of the most competitive in the world. Winning that title, more often than not, points to a blisteringly fast driver capable of winning races and challenging for championships in F1.