Toto Wolff Evaluates Kimi Antonelli’s Performance in Monza
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff admitted that rookie Kimi Antonelli’s performance at the Italian Grand Prix was “disappointing”, although he reaffirmed his confidence in the young driver’s potential.
Antonelli struggled in his home race, qualifying seventh and finishing ninth.
The 19-year-old driver spun in the second practice session and, during the race, received a final black and white warning flag for repeated track limits violations. In addition, he was penalized with five seconds for pushing Williams driver Alex Albon off the track.
“Disappointing this weekend. Disappointing,” Wolff said about the rookie’s race. “You can’t put the car in the gravel and expect to be there. The whole race was disappointing.”
Toto Wolff
Wolff added: “My support and confidence in his future doesn’t change because I think he’s going to be very, very, very good. But today was… disappointing.”El jefe de Mercedes, Toto Wolff, ha criticado a Kimi Antonelli por su actuación en Monza, pero insiste en que aún cuenta con su respaldo.Despite the high expectations for his talent and a podium finish at the Canadian Grand Prix in June, Antonelli’s performance has declined lately.
Mercedes has acknowledged that this season is a steep learning curve for Antonelli, who replaced Lewis Hamilton.
Wolff, who briefly considered Max Verstappen as an option for 2026, has confirmed that Antonelli will continue alongside George Russell in 2026.
When asked how Mercedes can unlock the young driver’s potential, Wolff said they need to find a way to remove the pressure he carries.
“Just freeing him up. Freeing him up,” Wolff said. “You know, he’s a great driver. He has this incredible skill and natural talent. He’s a racing driver. It’s all there. But we need to get rid of the ballast.”
Added: “I think a clean weekend means almost not carrying too much trauma from previous mistakes into the next session or the next weekend because that’s [baggage]. You’re not going to attack the curve hard if you’ve gone off before finishing your session or maybe you’re not attacking a driver who shouldn’t be in your way.”
Antonelli is in eighth place in the championship, 124 points behind Russell.
