Kimi Antonelli set to be named as Lewis Hamilton’s replacement at Mercedes

Antonelli, who turned 18 last Sunday, was thrust into George Russell’s cockpit for the opening practice session for Sunday’s Italian Grand Prix at Monza.

But his hotly anticipated first appearance lasted fewer than six laps, and only 10 minutes, after he lost control of his Mercedes at the Parabolica at 160mph, sliding backwards through the gravel and into the tyre barrier.

The Italian launched an expletive over the radio, before apologising to his team. He emerged from his damaged Mercedes and was taken to the medical centre after the crash registered at an eye-watering 45G. He was later given the all-clear, but was then withdrawn from his scheduled media commitments with Mercedes saying the teenager was unwell.

Hamilton’s blockbuster transfer to Ferrari leaves a vacancy at the Silver Arrows, and, after failing to woo Max Verstappen from Red Bull, Antonelli’s promotion is poised to be confirmed before final practice here at the Italian’s home race on Saturday.

Asked what bearing the crash will have on Antonelli’s F1 chances, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff replied: “Zero. An FP1 that’s gone wrong is not a reason why you decide to fall against the driver.

“What we always said is that he’s a rookie, he’s very young, and we are prepared to invest in his future.

“These moments will happen, and they will continue to happen next year, but there will also be a lot of highlights. What we’ve seen today is that we have a problem in slowing him down, rather than making him faster, because what we’ve seen from one and a half laps is just astonishing.”

Verstappen, who leads Lando Norris in the championship by 70 points with nine rounds left, remains on Mercedes’ radar for 2026.

The Dutchman appeared on course to canter to a fourth consecutive world championship, but he will head into Sunday’s contest at the Temple of Speed without a win from his last five appearances.

Last time out in Zandvoort, Norris claimed only the second victory of his career following a crushing performance in his rival’s back yard.

Verstappen finished fastest here in first practice, two tenths clear of Norris, but the triple world champion claimed that this season’s championship fight is no longer in his hands.

“If I win the title or not, it’s not going to change my life,” he said. “Would I like to win it? Yes, of course. But it is not in my hands with the performance of the car.

“I just try to do the best I can, try to make it faster, and if that’s going to be enough by the end of the year, I don’t know.

“Would I like to win more? Yes, of course. But I also knew that a season like we had last year is very unrealistic. Did I expect it to be like this? Not really because of how we ended last season and how we started this year. But everyone is working flat out to make it better.”