Kimi Antonelli has reached a major milestone ahead of his debut season in Formula 1. The Italian driver is set to line up on the grid for Mercedes this year as Lewis Hamilton’s replacement.

Mercedes' new Formula One driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli has passed his driving test in Italy, just weeks before he is set to replace Lewis Hamilton at the team. The 18-year-old Italian successfully completed the rite of passage to become road-ready ahead of his much-anticipated F1 debut in March.

Antonelli turned 18, the minimum age to drive on public roads in Italy, in August 2024. Read more at straitstimes.com.

Until recently, the 18-year-old Italian sensation couldn't legally drive a modest 1ltr hatchback on public roads, despite being trusted by Mercedes to fill the shoes of none other than Lewis Hamilton in their high-stakes F1 races.

Lewis Hamilton has made his hotly anticipated debut in a Ferrari car on track as the team prepare for the 2025 Formula 1 season. The seven-time world champion battled thick fog that greeted him at Ferrari's Maranello HQ - a good omen as fellow seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher also battled the fog on his first day at Ferrari back in 1995.

Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton may return to action for Ferrari. Recently, a test took place at Fiorano. Since Tuesday, the Scuderia has been running a three-day test in Barcelona with the SF-23.

Almost a year after his move from Mercedes was announced, Hamilton completed his first test as a Ferrari driver at the team’s Fiorano test track last week. Ferrari fix Lewis Ham