The Monaco Grand Prix historically it is also one of the most important events for the Formula 1 market. Historically it was the stage where the majority of new contracts were signed, although over time this period has extended and drastically changed. We witnessed the announcement of Lewis Hamilton in Ferrari before the season even started, as well as the renewals of Charles Leclerc And Lando Norris. Some pieces of the puzzle have come together lately, with the confirmation of Alexander Albon in Williams and the passage of Nico Hulkenberg at Sauber7Audi. The German brand itself is increasingly trying to convince Carlos Sainz to embrace their cause, while Haas is thinking about the new line up for next year. Kevin Magnussen has not yet renewed, Ollie Bearman is a very hot name for one of the two seats of the American team, while a name for the other Haas is to Esteban Ocon, who could leave Alpine. Carlos Sainz’s position is certainly the most complicated: he hopes for a Red Bull chance, Mercedes is not a hot option and the Audi offer remains. It is Toto Wolff’s team that instead represents the last tempting seat available, with Lewis Hamilton’s replacement yet to be announced, with the name of Andrea ‘Kimi’ Antonelli always very well considered by the Austrian manager, who however has not no rush.
Toto Wolff and his ‘wait and see’ strategy for Hamilton’s successor at Mercedes
Why aren’t they in Brackley in a hurry to choose the replacement for the seven-time world champion, who is about to join Ferrari? Basically because Toto Wolff’s dream was and remains to try to get Max Verstappen from Red Bull, but the chances are close to zero now. The internal struggle in the world of Milton Keynes – between the Thai side with Christian Horner and the Austrian side with Helmut Marko – has calmed down a bit and has ironed out some differences, at least publicly. The Dutchman’s position is therefore firmer than before, at least until 2025 with the exit clause still valid in his contract in the event of Helmut Marko’s departure. The skilled Mercedes manager tried to test the territory and thought of a strategy with the arrival of the Austrian advisor to Mercedes, plus the Dutch driver. Adrian Newey, however, has never been a real objective, with the technical market featuring other names as far as Brackley is concerned.
If Toto’s hopes of welcoming Verstappen as early as 2025 are declining, solution ‘B’ – although still luxury and which would be a very fascinating question, remains the one linked to the name of Andrea ‘Kimi’ Antonelli. The young Italian driver is involved in Formula 2 and is carrying out an intense testing program with Mercedes itself. Toto has no intention of speeding things up and he recently reiterated that “I feel a little guilty about the excessive attention there is on him. In Italy there are many expectations on him, but I’m sure he will arrive in Formula 1, but let’s let him do his Formula 2 championship in peace.And”. At Imola, another very important member of Mercedes, the Technical Director, James Allison, was also asked for an opinion: “It’s not my job luckily, but if I were in that position, I would probably take Kimi”
Positive tests and good impressions towards the technicians, Antonelli is ‘earning points’
While his Formula 2 career continues, in parallel the young Italian is holding a series of scheduled tests with Mercedes. This is for him to gain experience with a Formula 1 car and be ready in case the call comes, be it in Mercedes itself or in Williams, for next year. After the days of testing carried out at the Red Bull Ring and Imola, Antonelli was recently involved in a new session at Silverstone, where Mick Schumacher and George Russell were also present. According to what was gathered by formu1a.uno, the Italian driver is increasingly convincing with his performances and the times set in this last test were positive, higher than those of the German. Some features positively surprised the Brackley technicians, as James Allison himself explained “I had the pleasure of hearing from the engineers who worked with him. He’s a very enthusiastic boy, very fast and he was like a metronome on the times. 1-2 laps were enough for him to become familiar with a Formula 1 car.”
The technical director of Brackley then underlined how Antonelli does not know the old generation of single-seaters – except for the day of testing with the W12 at the Red Bull Ring – and therefore his feedback relates exclusively to the sensations he experiences with the ground effect car “He feels what we think he should feel in the car, and he then manages to give very clear feedback on the strong and weak points of the single-seater and the changes he would like to make to the single-seater.” An aspect highlighted by James Allison was the naturalness with which Kimi faced these tests “Often a young driver, in order to show what he is capable of, makes mistakes, such as a spin. Or on the contrary, he is so afraid of making mistakes that he doesn’t show what he is capable of. Kimi, on the other hand, immersed himself in this test program very well: he is fast, consistent and very promising.”
