Andrea Kimi Antonelli - 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Lewis Hamilton’s potential replacement at Mercedes - is taking part in his F1 test debut today as he au𝔉ditions for a 2025 seat.

The 17-year-old Italian is getting his first taste of F1 machinery on﷽ Tuesday in a 2021 Mercedes W12 at the Red Bull Ring in Austria.

Antonelli is believed to be the favourite to replace the Ferrari-bound Hamilton and become 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:George Russell’s teammate at Mercedes in 2025.

Mercedes are evaluating their highly-rated protege in the first of two F1 tests planned for this year, with Antonelli also scheduled to drive the team’s 2022 car later this▨ season.

Antonelli’s progress i💙n his rookie Formula 2 season with Prema will also be closely monitored by Mercedes as they weigh up candidates to fill their vacant seat.

After missing out to Red Bull on 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Max Verstappen, Mercedes are wary 𒊎about letting another teenage sensation slip away.

Despite enduring a tough start to the F2 season, Antonelli has already racked up the requir✤ed super licence points thanks to his title triumphs in ADAC F4 and Formula Regional championships.

Once the former karting phenomenon tu🌼rns 18 on August 25, he will be eligible to race in F1.

Speaking about Mercedes’ private test plans for Antonelli, team boss Toto Wolff said: “The programme of Kimi driving Formula 1 has been in place for a long time and ♔hasn't changed massively over the last few weeks.

“What we have done is added more days, but what you will see in the next few months has beeℱn in place, whether or not he's going to sit in a Formula 1 car next year.

“We're going to do a few of these days for him to get comfortable in an F1 car. He's driving the 2021 car in Austria for the first time. We want to give him a feeling of what a really good car f♑eels like before we put him in t🐼he ’22!

“Obvi🦹ously, he's been our young boy since a long 🍰time and we're keen to see what he's able to do in a Formula 1 car.

“[Ferrari reserve] Ollie Bearman was refreshing to look at how competitiꦇve he was in Saud✱i Arabia. No free practice, high speed, complicated track, and he was right up there. So Kimi would be doing just fine.”

Asked about Mercedes’ driver dilemma for 2025, with experienced alternatives such as168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史: Carlos Sainz available, Wolff said: “You can look at it from various perspect🐟ives.

“I believe that we are in a rebuild phase. You need to acknowledge that now three years into these regulations, we have got to do things differently than we've done in the past without ꦏthrowing overboard what we believe is goodness in the way we operate.

“It could mean putting a young driver in there and giving hi𒅌m an opportunity wit🍒h less pressure than fighting for victories immediately, or putting a more experienced driver in the car that can help us dig ourselves out of the current performance picture.”