Mercedes F1 star facing intense pressure at Imola Grand Prix

A star of the Mercedes Formula 1 team will be placed under intense pressure this weekend in Imola.

Rookie racer Kimi Antonelli has revealed he will be bringing his school friends along to the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix as the 18-year-old looks to continue his meteoric rise in the sport so far.

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The Italian is set to take part in his first race in his home country this weekend, when F1 rocks up to the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari circuit in Imola for round seven of the 2025 championship.

Despite barely being old enough to drive on the roads in his home country, Antonelli will be taking to the track in Italy, hunting for his first podium in the sport.

The 18-year-old has performed brilliantly so far in his debut campaign and currently sits ahead of seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton in the drivers' standings after five point-scoring weekends out of six to kick off his career.

On top of this, Antonelli became the youngest pole-sitter in the history of the sport last time out in Miami, when he finished top in sprint race qualifying.

Now, the Italian has revealed his excitement at competing in F1 in his home country for the first time this weekend, having only taken part in an FP1 session in Monza previously in his career.

"I'm so happy, on Friday I'll arrive directly from my house in Bologna and sleep in my own bed before going to the track," he told Gazzetta. "It's also my little sister's birthday, so I can celebrate with her.

"My whole family, my best friends and even my classmates. Since I can't go on school trips, I thought I'd take them to the track with me over the weekend."

Antonelli future world champion?

While Antonelli is currently only contracted until the end of the 2025 season, it is likely that Mercedes will try and tie him down for as many years as possible, with the Italian's performances boosting them to second in the constructors' championship.

Alongside George Russell, Antonelli has been growing in confidence during every race weekend at the wheel of the W16, even out-qualifying his team-mate in both the sprint and main race qualifying in Miami last time out.

Toto Wolff missed out on signing four-time champion Max Verstappen when he was a teenager, but now the Austrian has got Antonelli, he is unlikely to want to let him go after the Italian has shown glimpses of world champion pedigree.

Antonelli became the youngest driver to lead an F1 race earlier this season and became the first rookie since Hamilton in 2007 to score points in his first three races in the sport.

However, the youngster is still looking for his first podium and his first race victory, which would make his rookie season one of the best in F1 history.

Whilst the up-and-coming F1 star may seem relatively chilled out ahead of his first home race, Antonelli is under intense pressure to perform not only in front of his classmates and family but also to improve on his less-than-impressive previous run in Italy.

At the 2024 Italian Grand Prix in Monza, the youngster took to the track to replace Russell in FP1 but crashed in front of his second home crowd.

As the sport returns to his home country, Antonelli will certainly be looking to do better than his short-lived debut in an F1 session last year.

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