Kimi Antonelli prank leaves Mercedes engineer Bono frustrated once again

Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes, Japan, 2026 — Photo: © IMAGO

F1 News & Gossip

Kimi Antonelli prank leaves Mercedes engineer Bono frustrated once again

The joys of being an F1 race engineer for a teenager

Originally written by Kerry Violet. This version is a translation.

Sunday 17 May 2026 17:00

Mercedes has undergone a significant transition following the departure of seven-time Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton from the team.

Few people inside the organization have experienced that adjustment more directly than longtime race engineer Peter Bonnington.

Known throughout the paddock as 'Bono', Bonnington has remained one of Mercedes’ key figures for years, serving as race engineer to multiple world champions and playing a major role during some of the team’s most successful eras.

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Prior to becoming Hamilton's right-hand man in 2013, Bono was Michael Schumacher's engineer during the German's return to F1 between 2011 and 2012.

But now, team principal Toto Wolff has thrown Bono in at the deep end with a completely different challenge—guiding teenage sensation Kimi Antonelli through his maiden and sophomore F1 campaigns.

Antonelli takes the lead in Mercedes F1 'prank wars'

Following the Japanese Grand Prix in March, the 19-year-old became the youngest drivers' championship leader in F1 history, and after four rounds of the 2026 season, has stood on the top step of the podium three times.

What made Antonelli's debut F1 victory even special was the fact that Bono joined in on the celebrations at the Chinese GP, where fellow Mercedes star George Russell and Bono's former driver Hamilton were all reunited on the podium.

But aside from the positive results on track, Antonelli has been quite the pest to Bono off track, with the pair's working relationship being tested on multiple occasions already this year thanks to an ongoing prank war.

In the latest installment,the official Mercedes social media pages shared footage of Antonelli in action, plotting new ways to mess with his race engineer.

In the new clip which was accompanied by the caption: "Prank Wars: Episode III - The Italian Menace," Antonelli could be seen hard at work attempting to block Bono's Mercedes access card from working.

"I'm blocking Bono's access card. Everywhere," said Antonelli, when a voice heard from behind the camera questioned what he was getting up to on a team computer.

"It's inactive now... he can't use his card now," a Mercedes team member confirmed, before the now three-time grand prix winner replied: "Ok perfect... don't change it until he tries to come in. Then say you don't know anything about it."

The outcome of Antonelli's scheme was then shown, with Bono filmed attempting to get past a security door, an attempt which unsurprisingly, was not successful.

The long-time F1 race engineer was denied access as the door flashed red, but Antonelli failed to remain anonymous in his latest prank.

"The little s*** has done it again," said Bono, before testing it on another door within the Brackley HQ, which finally allowed him to continue his work day in peace.

F1 Mercedes Kimi Antonelli Peter Bonnington