Rising star Andrea Kimi Antonelli has passed his driving test just six weeks before he makes his Formula One debut for Mercedes at the Australian Grand Prix.

Italian Kimi Antonelli, the 18-year-old rookie replacing seven times Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes this season, has passed his driving test.

Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli has passed his road driving test – just six weeks before he makes his Formula 1 debut in Australia. Italian hotshot Antonelli, 18, is replacing Lewis Hamilton at the Silver Arrows in 2025 after a distinguished junior career. He will partner British driver George Russell.

Already qualified to race at 200mph, only now is the F1 rookie also deemed skilled enough for the public highway

Andrea Kimi Antonelli has already completed thousands of miles of testing in an F1 car, but couldn't legally drive on the roads until now. | ITV National News

This spring 18-year-old Andrea Kimi Antonelli joins the small cast of drivers who will race in Formula 1’s 2025 season. Kimi, as he’s called, fills a slot on the Mercedes team that opened when 40-year-old Lewis Hamilton announced he was moving to Ferrari.

Last August ahead of the Italian Grand Prix, Mercedes announced that Andrea Kimi Antonelli would slide into the seat vacated by Lewis Hamilton, making him the third-youngest driver in Formula 1 history.

Talented teenager Kimi Antonelli is the heir to Lewis Hamilton's throne at Mercedes and is so young that he only this week passed his road driving test

Italian Kimi Antonelli, the 18-year-old rookie replacing seven times Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes this season, has passed his driving test. "Mission completed," Mercedes posted on their Instagram account,

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