Kimi Antonelli aware he must “perform at my best” to secure long-term Mercedes F1 seat

Kimi Antonelli has conceded that he will need to up his game to secure his Mercedes F1 future beyond next year.

Ahead of the United States Grand Prix, Mercedes announced new deals for Antonelli and George Russell.

While Russell’s new contract is understood to keep him at the team until the end of 2027, Antonelli’s is just for next year.

The 19-year-old has endured a mixed rookie season.

After a promising start, Antonelli’s form tailed off in the middle of the year, particularly during the European leg of the campaign.

Antonelli has returned to form in recent weeks, coinciding with Mercedes’ improved competitiveness.

He finished fourth in Azerbaijan after qualifying ahead of Russell.

Antonelli looked to have the edge on Russell in Singapore up until qualifying.

However, a scrappy Q3 put Antonelli on the back foot, leaving him battling the Ferraris for most of the grand prix, as Russell won the race.

Antonelli is fully aware that he needs to perform next year, particularly if Mercedes start the new regulations with a race-winning car.

“I don’t know, I race year by year, and I’m always trying to deliver the best results as possible,” Antonelli said.

“As I said before with the team, they obviously want to work with me also in the future, and not only next year, but I need to perform as well.

“Their plan is to continue with me as well, probably beyond 2026 as well. But for me as a driver, I need to perform and I need to deliver the results, especially next year because I’ll have a year under my belt and it’s going to be a new regulation for everyone and a massive opportunity.

“If we have the car, it’s going to be really important for me to really maximise the result and to really perform at my best, especially if I want the seat for ’27 and beyond.”

Antonelli had ‘doubts’

Antonelli was open about his struggles during the middle of his rookie campaign.

Between Imola (round seven) and Zandvoort (round 15), Antonelli scored points just twice.

A series of errors and reliability issues made it a difficult spell for Antonelli.

He admitted that “some doubt” started to creep in amid his struggles.

“The team has always been very clear on their plans and on what they wanted to do, so I was never really worried, but it’s always nice to get the confirmation,” Antonelli explained.

“Especially with all the ups and downs, especially the difficult period, some doubt starts to kick in. But the team has always been very supportive and very open that they wanted to continue with me, especially for next year.

“I’m really happy to have the confirmation now that it’s been announced. Even though I knew it, it still kind of relaxes me a little bit, a little bit more because I know now for sure that I have the seat for next year.”