Formula 1, Sportrik Media - Toto Wolff revealed he instructed Kimi Antonelli to “stop the nonsense” during the closing stages of the 2026 Chinese Grand Prix as the young Mercedes driver raced to his maiden Formula 1 victory.
Antonelli produced a historic performance at the Shanghai International Circuit, becoming the youngest pole-sitter in Formula 1 history. At 19 years, six months and 18 days old, the Italian surpassed the previous record held by Sebastian Vettel, who had taken his first pole at 21 years, two months and 11 days.
Although Antonelli started from pole position for the first time in his Formula 1 career, he was not in a position to break the record for the youngest race winner in the sport’s history. That milestone remains with Max Verstappen, who won the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix at the age of 18 years, seven months and 15 days.
Despite losing the lead to Lewis Hamilton at Turn 1 on the opening lap, Antonelli quickly regained control of the race. On the second lap, he powered past the Ferrari driver at the hairpin to reclaim first position.
From that moment, the Italian driver maintained a consistent pace at the front of the field. Antonelli gradually built a comfortable lead over a group of pursuers behind him, including his team-mate George Russell, Hamilton, and Charles Leclerc.
Heading into the final three laps of the race, Antonelli held a nine-second advantage over Russell. However, a late mistake momentarily threatened his comfortable lead.
The young Mercedes driver locked up his tyres and ran slightly wide at the hairpin, an error that allowed Russell to reduce the gap significantly.
The moment immediately prompted a reaction from the Mercedes pit wall.
“That’s typical Kimi,” said Toto Wolff over the team radio to race engineer Peter Bonnington.
“Tell him to stop with this nonsense. We just need to bring it home. We don’t need any fastest laps anymore.”
Despite the error, Antonelli maintained control of the race and ultimately crossed the finish line five seconds ahead of Russell. Hamilton completed the podium in third place.
Following the victory, Wolff delivered a humorous message to his driver over the team radio.
“He’s too young. We shouldn’t put him in a Mercedes. Put him in a smaller team so he gets experience. Look at the mistakes he makes,” Wolff joked.
“Here we go, Kimi. Victory.”
Speaking to the media after the race, Wolff explained that his radio message was partly a response to criticism the team had faced for promoting Antonelli directly into a front-running seat at Mercedes.
Some observers had previously questioned whether the Italian driver was too young to handle the pressure of competing for a top team in Formula 1.
“When things go wrong there are always people saying it was a bad decision and that Mercedes took too much risk,” Wolff explained.
He noted that while criticism had never been overly harsh, there had been repeated suggestions that Antonelli should have gained experience with a smaller team before joining Mercedes.
“Many voices inside and outside the sport said it was a mistake. So it’s nice to make a small remark about that now,” he said.
Nevertheless, Wolff emphasised that Antonelli’s first victory should not create unrealistic expectations for the young driver.
“It’s just one race win. Today it’s great, but in two weeks we go to Japan and maybe he puts it in the wall,” Wolff cautioned.
According to the Austrian, the priority for Antonelli is continued development rather than immediate championship ambitions.
“We just need to keep our feet on the ground. There shouldn’t be any pressure at the moment.”
Wolff also highlighted the long-term relationship between Mercedes and Antonelli. The Italian driver has been part of the Mercedes junior programme since he was just 11 years old.
During that period, the team has closely followed his development through junior categories and remained committed to supporting his progression to Formula 1.
“It’s been a very long road with him,” Wolff said.
He recalled that similar questions were raised last year when Antonelli experienced several crashes during practice sessions and testing.
However, Mercedes maintained confidence in the driver’s potential.
“We continued to believe that he could do it, and now we are starting to see the rewards,” Wolff concluded.
Antonelli’s victory in Shanghai marks a significant milestone not only for the young Italian driver but also for Mercedes as the team continues its competitive campaign under the new Formula 1 regulations introduced for the 2026 season.
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