Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli says the difficulties of his rookie Formula 1 season in 2025 helped him become mentally stronger for the 2026 championship.
The Italian currently leads his Mercedes team-mate George Russell and Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton by 59 points in the drivers’ standings. After back-to-back victories in China and Japan, Antonelli became the youngest driver to lead the championship in his second season in Formula 1. He then added four more Grand Prix wins before the summer break.
Antonelli’s Formula 1 progress
Antonelli has made a significant performance improvement compared with the same stage 12 months ago, when he scored points in just two of nine European races. He finished his rookie season seventh in the standings with 150 points, recording podium finishes in Canada, Brazil and Las Vegas, alongside four retirements in Emilia-Romagna, Spain, Austria and Great Britain.
“Experience is playing a massive role,” the 20-year-old explained to F1.com as he reflected on the changes from 2025 to 2026.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes
Photo by: Sam Bagnall / Sutton Images via Getty Images
Antonelli said that although his 2025 campaign was challenging, he “needed” those difficult moments to become stronger “emotionally and mentally”.
“Of course, I still have a lot of experience to make, but I think last year, despite all the bad moments, the difficult periods, I think that was what I needed because that helped me to grow even more than what I anticipated. It made me stronger emotionally and mentally.”
Antonelli prepares for the Italian Grand Prix
Since Antonelli took the championship lead in Japan, there has been considerable discussion about when the pressure of a title fight might affect the young driver. So far, that pressure has yet to slow him down.
Antonelli now heads into his home race at Monza hoping for better fortunes than he experienced in 2025, although he will serve a power unit penalty. The Italian Grand Prix will take place at Monza from 4-6 September.
