Kimi Antonelli is the youngest Formula One champion in history – and he still gets pocket money from his parents. On Sunday, the Mercedes starlet, aged 20 years and 68 days, crossed the line in third place at the Mexican Grand Prix to seal his crown, almost four years younger than when Lewis Hamilton first did so in 2008. Thanks to bonuses, he has boosted his earnings for the year from a base of £2.5million to around £8.3m. Enough pocket money for a trip to the sweet shop, then. Maybe it was always on the cards for a kid who first got in a kart aged one, was trying simulators by three, started racing aged seven, jumped in a Lamborghini aged ten, and was signed by Mercedes at 12.He has always been a mischievous sort – at seven years old, he snuck into the German Grand Prix paddock in a tyre pushed by his father, and he still pranks Mercedes staff today by pushing cream pies in their face. But Antonelli is also a serious racer, hailed as a modern ‘role model’ by his Mercedes boss Toto Wolff and seen as the future of the sport.His historic season began in inauspicious circumstances, as his influencer girlfriend of almost three years, former karter Eliska Babickova, broke up with him. Kimi Antonelli is the youngest Formula One world champion ever, aged 20 years and 68 days It has been a difficult year after he was dumped by his girlfriend Eliska Babickova on the eve of the season Antonelli celebrates with his father Marco, mother Veronica, and sister Maggie
Babickova broke the news to the world via a video explaining that their values and goals had diverged – and shooting down any rumours of cheating. ‘We were just not really sure at what point the relationship was ourselves,’ she said in a video. But the Italian is used to overcoming setbacks. In his first-ever Formula One practice in 2024, he crashed at 160mph within 10 minutes. Now he is toasting a title-winning season after nine victories, with four races to spare. It is a remarkable story for a youngster who was tasked with replacing Lewis Hamilton when he joined Mercedes last year. He only passed his driving test two months before stepping into the English legend’s boots.And he is, in many ways, the same kid who was born and raised in Bologna, Italy. ‘He has a monthly (pocket money) budget to stick to,’ his mum, Veronica, told La Gazzetta dello Sport. ‘If he goes on holiday, he knows he can’t go over it. It won’t always be like this, but he’s still young. Kimi is fine with it; his only thought is about cars; in fact, sometimes he says he’d like to buy one.’His father Marco remembers: ‘I took him in a kart for the first time when he was one year old. I held him in my arms, pressing the accelerator and brake pedals, while he had his little hands on the steering wheel. Antonelli was precocious – here he is pictured with former Mercedes star Valtteri Bottas while still a child Ex-girlfriend Babickova denied any accusations of cheating, saying their lives were simply headed in different directions (Source: Instagram/@babickovaeli) Antonelli pictured as a child in 2016 – in many ways the Mercedes star has not grown up ‘It didn’t take him long to show me his talent: in 2009, I brought a simulator home for the Christmas holidays, and he was able to hold perfect lines. ‘Then, at ten years old, he took a few laps in a Lamborghini Super Trofeo. On that occasion, he controlled the car amazingly well.’Marco was a racing driver himself and now owns a team called AKM Motorsport. The example he set, grafting so hard to make things work, set up Antonelli with the values of humility and industriousness for which he is known.His mother said: ‘I think our example was important for him. When Marco was racing, he had to take out a bank loan to afford his helmet, his racing suit, and his travels. ‘We taught him that nothing in life can be taken for granted and that you have to earn things. Now he’s a Formula 1 driver, but I still see him as my son.’Antonelli was a glitteringly successful karter as a kid and spotted by Mercedes. They got in there fast, just beating Ferrari to his signature because he was officially too young for the Italian team’s academy scheme.His father had wanted him to be a footballer but he was drawn to motorsport from an early age and idolised Ayrton Senna, watching DVD videos of the great Brazilian. Lionel Messi is another idol.’When I was little, before everything even started, he didn’t want me to race because the sport can be very cruel at times, and especially financially. It’s a very difficult sport when you don’t have the right support,’ Antonelli has said.’I’d always be very grateful to Mercedes because they were the ones gambling on me when I was very little.’ He learned English, motorsport’s lingua franca, during his race weekends, and he now speaks it very well, and added German to his repertoire when he joined Mercedes. Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton lift the new champion Kimi Antonelli on their shoulders after his third-place finish secured the title at the Mexico GPHis quick learning and ability to bond with people in the high-pressure environment of Formula One has served him well. ‘Kimi is a character who needs people around him,’ a Mercedes friend of his told Daily Mail Sport. ‘He drapes himself across whichever colleague is close by. He is very close to his race engineer Bono (Peter Bonnington). He has one of those personalities that draws people in. He’s simpatico and has a photographic memory for people’s names. He enjoys spending time in the garage and with the car. He treats the car like a living being – touching it and talking to it.‘But he is also a people’s person and has brought a real sense of fun and mischief to the team. It’s impish fun.’When he goes back to San Marino, he has a ritual that helps sustain him away from the swirl of high-pressure sport. He hand washes his car, an AMG GT63 Mercedes, which he crashed last year. ‘It is a meditation for him,’ Daily Mail Sport’s Jonathan McEvoy was told. ‘He does that when he can on a Monday after a race.’That groundedness should serve him well as he moves in circles full of glitz, glamour, and temptations.’I don’t think he’s at risk of becoming the kind of flamboyant young superstar,’ Wolff told Reuters.’He goes to the car wash on the Monday morning. He loves the car that he has and people are very surprised to find him there, hoovering his car.’But he has his good group of friends around and people that care. And he’s fine with that.’The youngster has needed resilience to navigate personal strife this season after being dumped by his girlfriend just days before it began. Antonelli pictured with his father, Marco, who was also a racing driver but wanted his son to be a footballer In her video explaining the break-up, Babickova said: ‘We were just not really sure at what point the relationship was ourselves.’I’ve seen so much speculation and fake narratives and news, and whatever. That’s not right. I want to set it right and I want to set the record straight, just so everyone knows and there doesn’t need to be any more false, disgusting narratives.’I was the one to end the relationship because I felt that we no longer aligned in our personal lives and in what we wanted for our future.’Also, our values towards the end of the relationship were very different. That’s basically it. That’s why the relationship ended. There’s no massive drama. Nothing like this.’No other men, no other women were involved. There was no cheating. And I think it is super wrong for anyone to assume that because it is very misrepresentative of who me and Kimi are as people.’Antonelli came into the season as the number two driver behind George Russell, who was tipped for a title charge.The Italian still makes the occasional mistake – Max Verstappen even mocked him as he lost out on points for a track violation during the Miami GP Sprint Race – but he learns his lessons quickly. ‘It’s still surprising and amazing to see how quickly he develops,’ Wolff said after Antonelli won from 19th position in Monza. ‘For me, it’s like an AI agent that continuously self-improves and learns; that’s the speed.’Andrew Shovlin, Mercedes’ trackside engineering director, added: ‘You worried a bit that he would struggle to take all that in. There is a bit where the brain is still developing at that age, and it’s a lot to try and teach people. It’s a little bit like trying to do a university degree with a school kid. You’re trying to pile a load of information into them.’When he does make a mistake, it really registers in his subconscious, and he moves on from it.’His development is the worrying thing for the rest of the Formula One grid. Antonelli is not done. His progress promises a fascinating few years ahead, with Lewis Hamilton searching for that elusive record eighth Drivers’ Championship, while Verstappen is looking to build on his haul of four. READ MORE: Inside the rise of Kimi Antonelli: How a shock conversation with Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, a close relationship with Bono and hand washing cars at home propelled Italian to F1 history