Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has revealed that Kimi Antonelli will be given another two years to prove himself after his contract expires at the end of this season. The 18-year-old Italian driver stepped into Lewis Hamilton's shoes before the start of the current F1 season, signing a one-year deal after the seven-time world champion joined Ferrari.

Antonelli's start to life in F1 has not been entirely smooth sailing, having had to settle for two retirements and an 18th-place finish in Monaco. That means he sits seventh in the Drivers' Championship standings after 10 races. Suffice it to say that, with just months left on his Mercedes contract, there have been concerns over whether the youngster has shown team principal Wolff enough to warrant a Silver Arrows seat for another year. That is especially the case given the whispers surrounding four-time world champion Max Verstappen's potential shock move from Red Bull to Mercedes.

However, Wolff, who has been moulding Antonelli since he joined the Brackley outfit's junior programme in 2019, insists the teenager is part of Mercedes' long-term plans. The Austrian went on to reveal that he could give Antonelli more time in the form of another two years for him to truly reach his lofty potential.

Wolff told Bloomberg: "Managing the tyres has become really difficult. It's not enough to be fast on a single lap or in the race. It's important to exploit the tyres without sliding and without overheating them.

"Look at Oscar Piastri. It took him a year and a half to get to the level of Lando Norris, and in 2025, for the first time, he is ahead."

Wolff went on to add: "Antonelli will probably need a three-year programme. That's how long a young driver needs to challenge a more experienced and faster teammate. But we would never have entrusted the seat to a driver who we don't consider a potential world champion."

It comes after Antonelli secured his first podium finish in F1 earlier this month at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. He jetted straight from Canada to Italy afterwards to sit the equivalent of his A-Level exams.

The future of his experienced team-mate George Russell has also been the subject of some speculation, with the Brit's three-year deal also expiring in December. Russell has enjoyed a steady upward trajectory with the Silver Arrows which included a Grand Prix victory in Canada, though it is uncertain where his future will lie if Verstappen ends his Red Bull contract early.

In the event that Russell leaves Mercedes to make way, one unnamed Red Bull source speculatively told Auto Motor und Sport: "If Wolff takes Verstappen, he'll be changing two drivers. Verstappen would ruin Antonelli."