Wolff plays down Antonelli rumours: 'He needs to concentrate on this'

Rumours have surrounded young Italian superstar Andrea Kimi Antonelli recently. The Prema F2 driver has been tipped to be replacing Logan Sargeant at Williams, and currently sits in 9th place in the F2 standings on 24 points after six rounds. The FIA recently received a super license request for the 17-year-old, fuelling rumours that he may join the grid. Toto Wolff, however, states that these stories won't do him 'Any favours'.

After the race in Miami, Mercedes CEO and team principal Toto Wolff was asked about his young starlet's possible F1 opportunity. He quickly shut down these rumours in the paddock.  

Rising star Antonelli needs to 'concentrate on F2' 

Wolff said: "As for Kimi, there are so many stories that were created that don't do him any favour because he needs to concentrate on his F2 campaign. He's doing lots of testing for us in order to bring him up to speed."

The Austrian also stated that Mercedes is still yet to decide who will partner George Russell next season. "This decision of the second driver is weeks if not months away," said the Mercedes boss. 

He also said that Mercedes hadn't made a super licence request for the 2023 FRECA champion: "We didn’t make any, that was not Mercedes that approached the FIA about getting an earlier release."

It seems unlikely that Antonelli will be partnering with George Russell for the 2025 F1 season. He still may have a spot in the Mercedes-affiliated Williams team, replacing Logan Sargeant. For now, Wolff remains quiet about Antonelli's future, and that of Mercedes' second driver for 2025.