Formula 1 rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli has attempted to ease the pressure of stepping into the shoes of Lewis Hamilton ahead of the 2025 season launch.
Hamilton rewrote the record books during his 12-year stint with the Mercedes factory team, taking his haul of drivers’ titles to seven while assisting the team to seven constructors’ crowns.
Following the shock announcement in January last year that the Briton would make the switch to join Ferrari in 2025, attention quickly turned to Antonelli, who had made the leap from Formula Regional European to Formula 2 but now found himself as the primary contender to fill the unexpected vacancy.
Keen to shift some of the pressure on his 18-year-old shoulders, Antonelli said ahead of the F1 season launch event, “I don’t find it right to say that I am his replacement.
“He has done so much in the sport and I just feel that I’m the next Mercedes driver and I really want to make my own story.
“But definitely, racing for Mercedes is a big responsibility because it’s a top team. But at the same time, it’s a great opportunity.
“It’s a privilege and I’m just trying to make the most of the opportunity.”
F2 struggles a “good lesson” for Antonelli
Despite his rookie status, Antonelli had arrived in F2 as one of the favourites to claim the title. As well as his well-known talent, this expectation level had been further boosted due to his positioning with the Prema team – an outfit with an established championship pedigree.
However, Prema found itself among a number of teams that struggled to get to grips with the all-new Dallara F2 2024 and while his early results were respectable, they were not at the level many had predicted.
But neither team nor driver gave up, leading to a pair of mid-season victories in the Silverstone sprint race and the Hungarian feature outing, with a further podium being achieved in the Baku feature race.
“I think last season was a really, really good lesson because it is when the struggles come that you actually become stronger and you actually learn how to overcome the struggle, and even trying to get out of it and improve the situation,” Antonelli added.
“It was a really good learning [year] last season, and definitely this season, I am facing another big step. There are probably going to be some struggles to face and I feel more prepared to face them.
“Definitely, last year was a really good lesson.”
Feature Image Credit: Clive Mason – Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images
