Wolff leaps to driver's defence amid Hamilton replacement rumours

Toto Wolff has come to the defence of Mercedes protégée Andrea Kimi Antonelli after he suffered a difficult opening weekend to his rookie season.

His championed Prema outfit are frequent title contenders in Formula 2, but struggled massively in the first race of a new era of cars.

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He fared well in comparison to team-mate Olliver Bearman, who is also a highly rated talent and sits within the Ferrari Driver Academy.

Antonelli did manage to secure his first point with 10th in the feature race, despite starting down in 17th place – shining a slightly positive light on an otherwise difficult weekend.

Wolff protects Antonelli from the media

Speaking to motorsport.com about the young Italian speedster’s first F2 weekend, he came to the defence of his efforts after Prema struggled to find any pace.

Antonelli has been tipped for a potential seat at Mercedes for 2025, alongside George Russell following Lewis Hamilton's shock move to Ferrari.

“A championship-winning team 17th and 18th, in F2, that's not at all where they should be,” Wolff said.

“I think you can look at him against the team-mate, that is one of the comparisons, and I think Oliver Bearman is a top driver. But I think, like I always said, I'm almost guilty of talking too much. We will see how the next few races pan out.

“I'm in no hurry for us to take a decision on drivers. I've been rushed in a hurry by Lewis. So, this time around I'm going to take it easy and evaluate the market.”

There are plenty of experienced talents available if Mercedes want to be conservative in giving Antonelli time to build up to F1.

He could yet kick on and have a sensational season, so it’s important to be wary that there are still another 13 events before a championship winner is crowned.

READ MORE: EXCLUSIVE: Mercedes pushing Russell, NOT Hamilton insists F1 champion

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