Andrea Kimi Antonelli is eyeing a 2026 Formula 1 title fight as his Mercedes team enters the year as championship favourites - but boss Toto Wolff is playing down expectations.
This year, F1 will introduce a completely new set of regulations with changes to both the chassis and power unit - meaning it is currently unclear what the pecking order will be given the wholesale switch-up.
But Mercedes is still the bookmakers’ favourite considering it dominated the last engine switch in 2014 with a record eight, straight titles. It also started this season strongly, and impressed in last week’s Barcelona shakedown.
The Silver Arrows completed the most mileage of any team across its three days of running, with Antonelli even conducting a full race simulation - a big feat so early on.
It therefore looks as though Mercedes has overcome its four disappointing years during the ground-effect era where either McLaren or Red Bull clinched every title as the Silver Arrows fell far behind.
So Antonelli now has his sights on winning the championship, despite being only 19 years old and entering his second season after finishing seventh in his rookie campaign with three podiums.
“That's absolutely the goal,” said Antonelli, who was fast tracked to F1 with five titles at the junior level, during the official Mercedes 2026 launch on Monday.
“The goal is to win and to eventually fight for the world championship. So, that's my goal and the goal is to win and to be one of the best. So definitely, that's what I want and of course, George [Russell] is very, very strong and definitely is ready to fight for a championship and is one of the benchmarks on the grid. I think it's going to be quite fun, especially competing with him and so, yeah, really looking forward to it.”
Wolff, however, is not hyping up Antonelli’s title chances after a very up-and-down 2025 campaign as the Italian’s three podiums and Miami sprint pole was marred by various needless mistakes like crashing in a free practice outing.
There is also the added caveat that team-mate Russell is now in his eighth year of F1, was considered the best driver behind Max Verstappen last season and is the title favourite.
The Mercedes boss said: “Kimi, he's completely on the trajectory that we've always mapped out at the beginning, last year - first year in Formula 1 with this huge circus coming upon him, the obligations with the media, the requests from sponsors and fan fandom and that's exactly why we had very good performances and then some races where he struggled more.
“So now there's no doubt about his speed and about his race craft. He's going into his second season, he knows all the tracks, he knows all of you guys, he knows most of the other requirements. So I'm absolutely certain that it will be a good year for him.
“Having said that, I don't think we should expect him to be on top, to be like George all the time. George is one of the best ones, he's been in Formula 1 a long time.
“He's a benchmark and Kimi's 19 and he's going into his second season. So we're going to see another step that I'm certain about.”
