Wolff outlines Mercedes expectations for Antonelli

Toto Wolff has moved to downplay the lofty expectations placed upon Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli, who will make his F1 debut at the 2025 season opener in Australia.

The team principal of the Brackley-based squad insists the Italian driver must "grow and make mistakes" in his maiden campaign, which the German marque is viewing as a "transitional year" before the F1 regulations are overhauled for 2026.

Antonelli has graduated from F2 sooner than expected, something that was set in motion by the surprise announcement that Lewis Hamilton would depart Mercedes for Ferrari a little over 11 months ago.

Having skipped FIA F3 entirely, the 18-year-old will embark on his first F1 season fewer than 18 months after wrapping up the Formula Regional (FRECA) championship, in a cross between F4 and F3 machinery.

His inexperience showed upon his FP1 debut at last season's Italian Grand Prix, when - in front of adoring home fans at Monza and a matter of minutes into the session - Antonelli put new team-mate George Russell's W15 into the wall at Curva Alboreto (formerly Parabolica).

But Wolff anticipates more learning moments from the Mercedes protégé early in the campaign, despite hoping he will be on the pace sooner rather than later.

The 52-year-old outlined how the risk of Antonelli's signing is linked to what is immediately expected of him.

"If you expect him to be on pole position in Melbourne, win the race and immediately compete for the championship, then the risk is high because that won't happen," the Austrian said to German publication Auto Motor und Sport.

"If we take into account that he is only 18-years-old, very talented, but needs to grow and make mistakes first, the risk is less."

The 'transitional year' to come...

It has become apparent that Antonelli's former PREMA team-mate in F2, Oliver Bearman, instigated a defining moment in how F1 views current the class breaking through when he deputised for Carlos Sainz at Ferrari for the Saudi Arabia Grand Prix.

That critical juncture opened the floodgates for his peer group, with six drivers - or 30 percent - of the 2025 grid starting their first full-time season in the championship.

Looking back at that drastic shift in policy up and down the paddock, Wolff highlighted how Franco Colapinto compounded that realisation when he replaced Logan Sargeant at Williams mid-season.

"Franco Colapinto also made an immediate impact," he recalled. "Suddenly everyone realised that the youngsters were starting at a very high level."

Coupled with Hamilton leaving for Maranello, it provided the opportunity for Mercedes to take a free hit on Antonelli this coming season.

"We see 2025 as a transitional year and want to prepare him for 2026, when everything will start from scratch for everyone," Wolff explained, pointing to the regulation changes that will offer at least a partial reset of the F1 pecking order, something Mercedes will hope to capitalise upon after an entire rules cycle in the relative wilderness.