Kimi Antonelli went from meeting Formula 1 stars as a kid to standing on the podium and fighting those same drivers at the front of the grid. At the 2018 Italian Grand Prix, 12-year-old Antonelli was selected as a Grid Kid and was assigned to Lewis Hamilton, even telling Lewis before the race that he was the best and could win. Hamilton did exactly that, taking victory at Monza, while Antonelli was still years away from making his own Formula 1 debut. Antonelli also crossed paths with Max Verstappen during his younger racing years, long before the Italian became one of the drivers actually battling him on Sundays. The story became even more surreal when Mercedes selected Antonelli to take over Hamilton’s seat for 2025, transforming one of his childhood F1 encounters into a full-circle career moment. Now in 2026, Antonelli is fighting at the very front, recently finishing second behind Verstappen with Hamilton third at Sepang. From watching and meeting the biggest names in the spo...