Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has lauded the ‘unpredictable’ success of Kimi Antonelli with two wins from the opening three grands prix of the 2026 Formula 1 season.

Mercedes entered the season tipped as the team to beat, with George Russell leading the way in the drivers’ market.

Flying somewhat under the radar was Antonelli, who had a mixed rookie campaign last term, with a strong beginning and end sandwiching a disappointing European leg.

This year, however, Antonelli has been on top form, becoming the second youngest race winner in the championship’s history, behind only Max Verstappen, the youngest pole sitter, and most recently, the youngest championship leader.

“I think when we decided to give him the seat one and a half years ago, we hoped for this trajectory, with the ups and downs that you expect from a young driver aged 18 in the first year,” reflected Wolff.

“Eventually, second year, the success would materialise, and I think this is happening.

“Now, could we have predicted two wins out of three races for Kimi? No. But in Japan, he was quick when it mattered, the luck was on his side, and also I think all of that contributed for him to have this consecutive victory.”

In Japan, Antonelli had dropped back to sixth place at the start, an area that continues to be a weakness for the team. Neither Mercedes driver had been able to make quick progress back through the pack, but it was Russell who led the pair before the planned pit stops.

It was this moment that had turned the race, with Russell stopping less than a lap before the intervention, while Antonelli was able to take advantage with a cheap stop, and leap into the lead.

Speaking after the race, Wolff revealed that poor luck with the safety car was just the tip of the iceberg on a difficult weekend for Russell.

“I think the race went against him, starting with the qualifying set-up decisions that put the car in a spot where it was, literally, from FP3 to qualifying, much worse,” explained Wolff.

“Then, at the start, certainly, we don’t give the two drivers the best tools for the start, but then there were also driver mistakes at the start. Then, we had to make the call before the safety car, because we were risking a position to (Charles) Leclerc, and luck fell on Kimi’s side. He was very quick at that stage, and it was bad luck for George that he lost his positions there. On top of that, we had a software glitch that gave him a super clip, and he got overtaken by Leclerc. So this is literally everything that went wrong for him over 24 hours.”

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has lauded the ‘unpredictable’ success of Kimi Antonelli with two wins from the opening three grands prix of the 2026 Formula 1 season.

Mercedes entered the season tipped as the team to beat, with George Russell leading the way in the drivers’ market.

Flying somewhat under the radar was Antonelli, who had a mixed rookie campaign last term, with a strong beginning and end sandwiching a disappointing European leg.

This year, however, Antonelli has been on top form, becoming the second youngest race winner in the championship’s history, behind only Max Verstappen, the youngest pole sitter, and most recently, the youngest championship leader.

“I think when we decided to give him the seat one and a half years ago, we hoped for this trajectory, with the ups and downs that you expect from a young driver aged 18 in the first year,” reflected Wolff.

“Eventually, second year, the success would materialise, and I think this is happening.

“Now, could we have predicted two wins out of three races for Kimi? No. But in Japan, he was quick when it mattered, the luck was on his side, and also I think all of that contributed for him to have this consecutive victory.”

In Japan, Antonelli had dropped back to sixth place at the start, an area that continues to be a weakness for the team. Neither Mercedes driver had been able to make quick progress back through the pack, but it was Russell who led the pair before the planned pit stops.

It was this moment that had turned the race, with Russell stopping less than a lap before the intervention, while Antonelli was able to take advantage with a cheap stop, and leap into the lead.

Speaking after the race, Wolff revealed that poor luck with the safety car was just the tip of the iceberg on a difficult weekend for Russell.

“I think the race went against him, starting with the qualifying set-up decisions that put the car in a spot where it was, literally, from FP3 to qualifying, much worse,” explained Wolff.

“Then, at the start, certainly, we don’t give the two drivers the best tools for the start, but then there were also driver mistakes at the start. Then, we had to make the call before the safety car, because we were risking a position to (Charles) Leclerc, and luck fell on Kimi’s side. He was very quick at that stage, and it was bad luck for George that he lost his positions there. On top of that, we had a software glitch that gave him a super clip, and he got overtaken by Leclerc. So this is literally everything that went wrong for him over 24 hours.”