Andrea Kimi Antonelli claims Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen have both changed how they treat him now that he is no longer a rookie but is fighting to win the F1 title.
Antonelli is only in his second year in Formula 1, but he leads the drivers’ standings after the first three rounds. The 19-year-old holds a nine-point lead over Mercedes teammate George Russell, with 72 and 63 points, while Ferrari rival Charles Leclerc is 23 points adrift in third.
Mercedes even saw Antonelli set a new record as the youngest driver to secure a Grand Prix pole position in China, where he also became the second-youngest race winner in China. He even went back-to-back with another pole position and race win at the Japanese Grand Prix.
Antonelli won the Chinese GP from pole after producing a commanding race at the Shanghai International Circuit that left his rivals far behind. But Suzuka saw a slightly different story, as Antonelli won from pole in Japan thanks to a safety car sparing his blushes after a poor start.
Kimi Antonelli says Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen have ‘stopped’ being ‘open’ with him
Antonelli could not believe how “delighted” Hamilton was for him when he won in China, as the seven-time champion took glee in the teenager who replaced him at Mercedes securing his first victory. Also, Verstappen backed Antonelli to take more wins after breaking his duct.
But Antonelli now notes that he feels like Hamilton and Verstappen have changed how they treat him, as the pair have both stopped being as open with him as they were last year. The Bologna boy embraced Hamilton and Verstappen’s help as a rookie, but that has “stopped”.
“Last year, they were very open and helped me,” Antonelli told BILD. “But now they have stopped.”
Antonelli adds that the most helpful advice that Hamilton gave him as a rookie last year was to enjoy being a Formula 1 driver, as the pressure from racing in the pinnacle of motorsport can take the shine from the job – let alone replacing the most successful driver in F1 history.
“The idea that I should always be myself and enjoy what I do in order to be fast,” Antonelli added. “The pressure in this environment is so great that it is easy to forget that.”
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff bet on one of their own after Hamilton decided to join Ferrari from the 2025 season by promoting Antonelli after just one middle-of-the-road year in Formula 2. But Antonelli’s back-to-back wins early in 2026 prove why Wolff backed him.
Antonelli still needs to improve his race starts, though, as the Italian has only had one clean launch thus far when he won the Chinese GP. The teenager has plummeted down the order at the start of the Australian Grand Prix, Shanghai Sprint and Japanese GP already this year.
