It was a given: the day Toto Wolff had to swallow his frustration with 'his' Kimi Antonelli

"There are signs that he has a lot of talent and potential, and now he needs to improve. When you invest in young drivers, these things happen. You have to be prepared to take that risk," said Toto Wolff after Kimi Antonelli 's crash in the 2024 Monza free practice session, one day before announcing his signing .

" The whole race was disappointing . That doesn't change my support and confidence in his future, because I think he's going to be very, very, very good. But today was… disappointing." After this recent edition, Wolff succumbed to reality: his young hopeful had another erratic and error-filled weekend, typical of his first season in Formula 1.

During the championship, Wolff had stoically accepted these youthful setbacks. What could be expected of Kimi Antonelli ? Fred Vasseur recently acknowledged that the challenge posed by Lewis Hamilton's jump to Ferrari had been underestimated . Look at the careers of Isack Hadjar or Gabriel Bortoleto as a comparison to Antonelli's haste .

These examples better explain the monumental challenge that filling the shoes of the multi-time champion represented for an 18-year-old. Wolff replaced the Briton with a teenager who, three years earlier, was competing three levels below Formula 1 and with toy cars. When he debuted in 2025, he was still in high school.

If Wolff aspired to replicate his Max Verstappen style and wanted to imitate the process followed with the Dutchman and Red Bull, he also faces the ultimate responsibility for the Italian's future : preventing his career from ending in a scorched state due to such a premature rise.

The baby thrown into the pool

Formula 1 is a world of data, and Mercedes relied on the data collected during private testing. Despite his inexperience, Antonelli was like a baby thrown into the pool to learn to swim on his own . It's also worth considering whether other motivations were at play.

Sometimes a driver's manager decides to avoid intermediate stages due to the risk of an uncompetitive team or bad luck in the competition ruining their career . Wolff had previously decided to jump to Formula 2 without going through Formula 3 , and in his first year in high-performance cars, the Italian also failed to deliver consistent results.

The Briton's unexpected departure humiliated Wolff, who proudly avoided going to the market for more experienced options. Antonelli is his Verstappen project , with which he would complete Hamilton's coup. The Austrian lost the Dutchman in a direct duel with Helmut Marko , who offered the Verstappens direct entry into Formula 1 from Formula 3. Wolff couldn't go that far and hasn't stopped courting him since. For now, with Antonelli, he wants to write his own story .

Verstappen debuted at Toro Rosso, not Red Bull, while Wolff impatiently ignored the Italian's gradual preparation for Formula 1. Perhaps his interests took precedence over those of the driver. Just like in the scenario set up to announce his signing in 2024. Saturday, official announcement. The day before, Antonelli took to the track with carte blanche, to the greater glory of the boss's perceptiveness. Ten minutes later, he was on the rails. A reflection of this season.

Formula 1 is not about turning a steering wheel

Comparing Antonelli to Russell makes little sense given the vast difference in experience. On Saturdays, he's only beaten him in Miami (third), where he took pole in the sprint. Never again. In Grand Prix competitions, he hasn't beaten the Briton either , although he did join Russell on the podium in Montreal. His debut in the difficult Australian race was commendable.

Since Imola, nine races, he hasn't finished five, with tenth at Monza being his best result and the exception being the podium at Canada . In Monaco, he ended up against the walls and went off track frequently. The Italian was grateful for the "fresh start" after the summer , confident in having returned to the initial suspension scheme for 2024. Although the more races he has, the more errors he makes, a result of the gap between experience and growing pressure.

At Zandvoort , he ended up off the track in free practice. On Sunday, he took out Charles Leclerc . At Monza, he also went off in free practice. "It's hard to have a good weekend when you put your car to bed on Friday," the boss remarked at the end of the Grand Prix. He made a mistake at the start and ended up penalized for his error in the duel with Albon. Wolff finally had to step in to the rescue, like a father who can no longer cover up his offspring's antics .

A high number of races in a season, multiple activities each weekend, a heavy mental and physical workload, inexperience in countless areas on board the car during the three days of the Grand Prix, and the enormous demand to assimilate information… Formula 1 isn't about turning a steering wheel . Antonelli may be a natural prodigy, but he needed to gradually accumulate experience. His season is confirming this.

"That doesn't change my support and confidence in his future at all, because I think he's going to be very, very, very good..." Hopefully, by 2026, Kimi Antonelli will have learned the hard lessons learned this season and everyone will reap the rewards. Or, perhaps, that accumulated burden could become a burden. He wouldn't be the first to burn out that natural talent before its time . Just ask Max Verstappen Sr.