Williams ready to welcome ‘Kimi’
From Monza to Imola it is a short step. If Joe Saward had previously speculated that Andrea Kimi Antonelli could make his debut in Monza after turning 18 at the end of August, in the last episode of his blog the English journalist even ‘relaunched’ the hypothesis that the Bolognese could be on track already in Imola in less than a month (of certainly on April 28th and 29th Antonelli will have another private test with Mercedes at the Enzo and Dino Ferrari racetrack in Imola).
“Mercedes is wondering whether to directly promote Antonelli to the official team in place of Hamilton in 2025, the best solution would be to loan him to Williams to allow him to accumulate experience for 2026 and Williams is looking for a driver right now – writes Saward – Williams would take Antonelli if they could keep him for 18 months, the problem is that the Super License will only be enabled at the end of August when Antonelli turns 18. Williams could ask the FIA for an exemption given that Verstappen was able to race at 17. If a driver proves that he has what it takes to race, he should be allowed to race. The one relating to a young rising star, an Italian one at that, would be a great story and if the Federation granted the exemption Antonelli would already debut in Imola on May 19th in his home race”.
A sensational scenario which, if it were to materialize, would transform the Miami GP into the last catwalk for Logan Sargeant. The American driver has had his chance, but it is understandable that Williams is ready to potentially raise the level of its line-up given that the fight for points in 2024 is closer than ever and Racing Bulls and Haas are already taking the wide.
