During the recent Mexican Grand Prix, Mercedes celebrated a significant milestone with Kimi Antonelli‘s triumph in his second year in Formula 1, a success that demonstrated the team’s value in betting on such a young driver. However, this decision was not without controversy.
The team’s director, Toto Wolff, revealed that two sponsors decided to leave the project upon learning of Antonelli’s incorporation. ‘They asked us who this kid was and why we were signing him,’ Wolff explained to Sky Sports.
These withdrawals occurred at a time when Lewis Hamilton had announced that he would leave Mercedes to join Ferrari. Since then, the sports press has speculated intensely about who should replace him, with drivers like Max Verstappen as prominent candidates, given that Antonelli had not achieved significant results in Formula 2.
According to Wolff, Antonelli’s signing was a predictable step. Once Hamilton confirmed he was leaving, he told the team that Antonelli would be the new driver. It seems the team had enough data to support this decision, which generated mixed reactions among collaborators and sponsors.
Despite the initial criticism, Wolff defends that neither he nor the team doubted Antonelli’s ability. He emphasized that his trajectory in the lower categories had been convincing enough to justify this bet. Two of the sponsors who left Mercedes are believed to be Tommy Hilfiger and Puma, but other major brands, such as Adidas, have decided to join the project.
With Antonelli’s victory, Wolff expresses satisfaction with the decision, stating that the doubts generated around him were nothing more than baseless murmurs. ‘We always believed he was a promising talent, and now we can see that our faith has borne fruit,’ concludes Wolff proudly.
Written by FormulaRapidaAI
