Can 'wild' Antonelli popularity save Italy's summer amid World Cup absence?

Kimi Antonelli is not only adjusting to being a Formula 1 title contender, but also carrying the motorsport-mad nation of Italy's hopes into the sporting summer. The 19-year-old has defied pre-season expectations to establish a 20-point lead over his Mercedes team-mate George Russell at the top of the Drivers' Championship with four of 22 rounds complete. Antonelli claiming his third successive victory last time out in Miami despite Mercedes - unlike their rivals - holding back their first major

F1 2026 standings | F1 2026 Calendar | F1 Gossip Column Download the Sky Sports app for expert analysis, best video & more 📱 Not got Sky? Get Sky Sports or stream with no contract on NOW 📺 Russell had been considered the clear favourite to carry Mercedes' title hopes, but after winning the season-opener in Australia, the 28-year-old Brit has largely been outperformed by his far less experienced team-mate. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Antonelli claimed his debut win for Mercedes at the Chinese GP After Antonelli claimed the first two wins of his career in China and Japan, an enforced five-week gap - caused by the cancellations of races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia - left plenty of time for hype to build, but perhaps the best performance yet of his young career in Miami has taken excitement around the teenager to another level. Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has already expressed concern over his belief that Italy's absence from this summer's football World Cup is going to result in a stronger spotlight on Antonelli, along with tennis world No 1 Jannik Sinner, who will attempt to defend his Wimbledon title in July. "The bigger ​problem is the Italian public," Wolff said following Antonelli's win in Miami. "Now that they are not qualified for the football, it's all about Sinner and Antonelli. It's ​the two who are superstars. And that's something which we need to contain. "There are so many requests for his time ​from the media, from sponsors. Now it's on us to keep the handbrake on. The risk is that he is being carried away too quickly." Following Wolff's comments, Sky Sports F1 spoke to Italian racing driver Vicky Piria, who has watched Antonelli's rise closely as a pundit for Sky Sport Italia , to find out just how high excitement levels are in Italy ahead of an intense summer of action. For the Italians who are within the industry, we could see it coming.

Key points

• F1 2026 standings | F1 2026 Calendar | F1 Gossip Column Download the Sky Sports app for expert analysis, best video & more 📱 Not got Sky?
• Get Sky Sports or stream with no contract on NOW 📺 Russell had been considered the clear favourite to carry Mercedes' title hopes, but after winning the season-opener in Australia, the 28-year-old…
• Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Antonelli claimed his debut win for Mercedes at the Chinese GP After Antonelli claimed the first two wins of his career in China and Jap…
• Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has already expressed concern over his belief that Italy's absence from this summer's football World Cup is going to result in a stronger spotlight on Antonelli, along with…
• "The bigger ​problem is the Italian public," Wolff said following Antonelli's win in Miami.