Mercedes have clarified rumours that Andrea Kimi Antonelli was involved in a testing shootout to decide who replaces Lewis Hamilton for the 2025 F1 season.
Sky Sports News understands 17-year-old Antonelli is one of the leading candidates to take over Hamilton's seat, while Max Verstappen remains a target for Mercedes, but his Red Bull contract expires at the end of 2028. Ferrari's Carlos Sainz is understood to not be an option for Mercedes, leaving Antonelli and Verstappen as the two main candidates.
Antonelli receives Hamilton backingMercedes tested Antonelli in their 2021 and 2022 F1 cars in April but have tried to play down their expectations of the Italian. Antonelli is highly rated after he won multiple junior single-seater titles at the first time of asking since stepping up from karts to racing cars in 2021. At the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in May, Hamilton was asked whether Sainz would be a good fit for Mercedes but responded by saying his preference would be Antonelli.
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