Norris issues Antonelli warning ahead of ‘steeper’ F1 challenge

Lando Norris believes Andrea Kimi Antonelli faces a "steeper" learning curve upon entering F1 than most of his peers on the 2025 grid.

The 18-year-old will step into F1 alongside George Russell at Mercedes next term when Lewis Hamilton departs for Ferrari.

Antonelli has undergone an extensive development programme this season, dovetailing time in previous years Mercedes F1 cars with his F2 schedule.

The Italian, who skipped FIA F3 altogether, got his first taste of an F1 weekend track action when he took over Russell's W15 in Monza, the day prior to be unveiled as the Briton's next team-mate.

Unfortunately for Antonelli, that experience lasted mere minutes when he found the barrier at Parabolica when pushing too hard on his second fast lap.

However, Norris feels that the Prema driver has the opportunity to learn from "one of the best" in F1, arguing that if Antonelli can handle the pressure he will successfully adapt.

"I'm sure it will be a steep learning curve for him, steeper than probably what most of us have ever had, which always comes with pressure and things like that," the McLaren driver told media including RacingNews365.

"As long as he copes with that well, learning from one of the best [George Russell] here [in F1] as his team-mate, then I'm sure he'll be up to speed in no time."

Despite missing an entire rung on the feeder series ladder, Antonelli has provided a positive account of himself in F2 - even with the usually-dominant Prema team struggling to for competitiveness by its high standards.

He took victory in treacherous conditions during the sprint at Silverstone and secured an impressive follow-up in the Hungaroring feature race to underline his credentials. 

However, Norris still thinks the next step will be "a lot" given how quickly Antonelli has moved through the ranks.

"He's going to be in Formula 1 because he's probably good enough to be there, and Toto [Wolff] sees a lot in him," the 24-year-old said.

"He's proven himself a lot in the junior categories and coming up through. I think it's a big jump to go from F4 to F2... so it's not probably been easy on him, but to go from F2 and then straight to F1, it's a lot."