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Kimi Antonelli

Kimi Antonelli is the teenage Italian prodigy Mercedes signed to replace Lewis Hamilton in Formula 1, making him one of the most hyped F1 rookies in decades.

By Alexandre Le Hégarat · datastats · Updated June 15, 2026
Kimi Antonelli

Andrea Kimi Antonelli was born on 25 August 2006 in Bologna, Italy. He burst onto the motorsport radar as a karting world champion and tore through the junior single-seater ladder at a pace that forced Mercedes-AMG Petronas to fast-track him into Formula 1 for the 2025 season, at just 18 years old.

He won the 2024 Formula 2 championship in his debut F2 season, sealing the title with a race to spare. That result, combined with dominant runs in F3 and the Formula Regional series before it, confirmed what scouts had whispered for years: Antonelli is a generational talent, not just a well-marketed prospect.

Mercedes officially announced him as Lewis Hamilton’s replacement in June 2024, handing him car #12 for the 2025 F1 World Championship alongside George Russell. The move put him at the centre of the biggest storyline in the sport, filling the seat vacated by a seven-time world champion.

Because of his age and rapid rise, search traffic around Antonelli is enormous and covers everything from his racing record to his personal life, his education, and his management. He is one of the most-searched young athletes in motorsport right now.

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Antonelli is from Bologna, Italy, where he grew up and his family is based. Like many F1 drivers, he is likely to establish residency in a hub such as Monaco or another European base as his career progresses, but no confirmed permanent adult residence has been publicly reported, so Bologna remains the publicly known answer.

He is Italian. Born and raised in Bologna, he races under the Italian flag and is widely celebrated in Italy as the country's brightest Formula 1 prospect since the days of early Ferrari stalwarts.

Antonelli was born on 25 August 2006, making him 18 years old as of mid-2025. He became one of the youngest drivers on the 2025 Formula 1 grid when the season began.

Antonelli is reported to stand at approximately 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in). That puts him on the shorter side for an F1 driver, which is actually an advantage in terms of weight distribution inside the cockpit.

No verified net worth figure has been publicly reported for Antonelli, and any number floating around online is speculation. What is confirmed is that he holds a multi-year Mercedes F1 contract, which at the top level of motorsport represents significant earnings, but the specific figures have not been disclosed.

Antonelli has not publicly confirmed a relationship as of mid-2025. No girlfriend has been identified in verified media reporting, so any name circulating online should be treated as unconfirmed.

There is no publicly confirmed information about who Antonelli is dating. He is 18 and famously focused on his racing career, his team and management keep his private life firmly out of the spotlight.

Antonelli is managed within the Mercedes-AMG junior driver programme, with the Mercedes-AMG Petronas infrastructure supporting his career. His personal management arrangements have not been fully detailed in public reporting beyond his formal relationship with the Mercedes junior academy.

The specific salary terms of his Mercedes F1 contract have not been disclosed publicly. Rookie F1 contracts at top teams typically start in the low millions of euros annually, but no confirmed figure for Antonelli has been reported, treat any specific number you see online as unverified.

Antonelli was still completing his secondary school education while racing through the junior formulae, a remarkable juggling act. The specifics of his current studies have not been detailed in public reporting, though it has been widely noted that he managed schoolwork alongside a demanding race schedule.

He was born on 25 August 2006 and is 18 years old as of mid-2025. He turns 19 in August 2025, during the Formula 1 season.

Because no girlfriend has been publicly confirmed by Antonelli or verified by reliable media, her origin cannot be reported. This remains private, or simply non-existent in the public record.

Antonelli chose #12 as his permanent F1 race number for the 2025 season. Drivers select their numbers partly for personal significance and partly for what is available, #12 was free and Antonelli opted for it. He has not given a detailed public explanation beyond it being his chosen number entering the sport.

Because he is 18, he was racing in Formula 2 at 17 and joined Formula 1 at 18, ages at which most young people are still finishing secondary education. Italian law and standard educational timelines mean he was completing his schooling while simultaneously competing at the highest levels of motorsport, which is extraordinary but logistically very demanding.

Andrea Kimi Antonelli is an 18-year-old Italian racing driver who competes for the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula 1 team in the 2025 F1 World Championship. He is the driver selected to replace seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, having won the F2 title in his debut season in 2024.

His father is Marco Antonelli, who has been heavily involved in Kimi's racing career from the very beginning, as is common in karting families. Marco has been a visible presence at junior race events, though he keeps a relatively low public profile compared to his son's growing fame.

He drives for the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula 1 Team in the 2025 F1 World Championship, partnered with George Russell. It is one of the most storied seats in the sport, previously occupied by Lewis Hamilton for 12 seasons.

The specific race engineer assigned to Antonelli for the 2025 season has not been confirmed in widely available public reporting at the time of writing. Mercedes typically announces engineering pairings closer to or during the season, check the official Mercedes-AMG F1 team communications for the confirmed name.

He is named after Kimi Räikkönen, the Finnish Formula 1 world champion and fan favourite known as 'The Iceman.' His parents chose the name as a tribute to Räikkönen, a detail that adds a delicious layer of narrative to his F1 story, since he now races in the same championship his namesake dominated.

This refers to the same role as his race engineer, the Mercedes-AMG F1 team member who communicates with him trackside and oversees car setup. As noted above, the officially confirmed name for the 2025 pairing had not been widely published at the time of this writing; the Mercedes team's official channels are the definitive source.

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