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When Toto Wolff held his annual media session with the Dutch press at Zandvoort a year ago, Kimi Antonelli was in the middle of the struggles that characterised the European part of his season. The then-rookie showed some moments of brilliance in Miami and Canada, but those were interspersed with difficult race weekends during his Formula 1 debut.
At the time, Wolff often summed it up as follows: “Sometimes there are brilliant moments that leave our mouths open, and sometimes we are pulling our hair out. But that is all in line with expectations.”
The expectation among many in the paddock was that 2026 would largely follow the same pattern. The reality, however, has been different. Antonelli has coupled his talent with an enormous step forward in consistency.
The young Italian has finished on the podium in every grand prix so far except Barcelona and Silverstone, and holds a 59-point championship lead over both team-mate George Russell and Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton.
When Motorsport.com asked Wolff whether the scale of Antonelli’s progress is perhaps even one of the biggest surprises he has experienced during his long career, the answer is clear.
“Definitely,” he said.
That said, Wolff had already been told by the likes of Hamilton and Max Verstappen last year that this was coming.
Kimi Antonelli leads the F1 standings in 2026
Photo by: Alastair Staley / LAT Images via Getty Images
“I think the great ones, they know,” Wolff explained. “You say it needs one to know one. And I think that when you listen to Lewis or to Max last year, they already said that he has the potential.
“And that’s what we felt in the team too, looking at his previous records in karting and the junior formulas.
“Nevertheless, to come out after the winter and just nailing it pretty much every single race is one of the big surprises in my professional racing career.”
From ‘parachuted into F1’ to no longer being a ‘deer in the headlights’
Wolff does, however, have an explanation for Antonelli’s rapid development, and according to him that explanation should not only be sought in technical aspects.
Yes, it could be that the 2026 machinery suits Antonelli’s driving style better than the ground-effect cars, but according to Wolff, the explanation can also be found on a human level.
“When I analyse it and ask myself what are the reasons that he had such a good reputation in the junior formulas and karting, I think it’s his processing power.
“I think he just needed the winter to process it. Why was it good? Why was it bad? What do I need to do?”
Toto Wolff has been impressed by his young driver
Photo by: Max Slovencik / Getty Images
On top of that, Wolff believes the stability within the team has also helped enormously. Everything is much more familiar than it was last year.
“And then to come into an environment that he already knew. He knew that flying to Melbourne would look that way. He knew the hotel. He knew the set-up. He comes to the track, and everything is as last year.
“And that means that it just comes down to driving and preparation, rather than being a deer in front of the headlights, like in 2025, thinking what’s happening? But yeah, it’s still one of the very nice surprises.”
For exactly the same reason, Wolff can also explain why 2025 was a season of ups and downs: a combination of the technical regulations and the inexperience of a rookie.
“What happened to Kimi last year is just what we predicted,” Wolff added.
“You’re being parachuted into Formula 1. He was 18 under a set of regulations that was very mature. Most of the drivers were racing those cars for a long time and Kimi didn’t know some of the circuits.
“And then there was this avalanche of media requests and pressure. Suddenly everyone who was part of your journey felt they needed to be with you or close to you. The demands were enormous.”
Kimi Antonelli’s 2025 struggles were “what we predicted”, the Mercedes boss said
Photo by: Jayce Illman / Getty Images
The 54-year-old Austrian says he received plenty of criticism for throwing Antonelli in at the deep end so early – just as Helmut Marko did at Red Bull 11 years ago following Verstappen’s F1 debut – but both men saw something special that made them willing to take the risk.
“Everyone and their dog said to me that it was too early, that I shouldn’t have put him into Mercedes and that I should have done a smaller team.
“Spa was probably one of the worst moments, but for me, I stood strong with him because I felt that it was exactly the year we needed,” Wolff said.
“We’re only making the assessment after the second year. And the way he’s come out of the blocks this year is a surprise to everyone, and yes, to me as well.”
Aside from his driving qualities and the talent he displays on track, Wolff smiles and says that Antonelli’s enthusiasm is also spreading throughout the team now.
“He is authentic, very open-minded, not political at all. He completely lacks that negative kind of thing. For him, it’s just all about performance on the track.
“And he’s made all the English mechanics hug each other now, which is also new for us!”
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