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Mercedes F1’s Andrea Kimi Antonelli prepares to succeed, not replace, Lewis Hamilton

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Mercedes F1’s Andrea Kimi Antonelli prepares to succeed, not replace, Lewis Hamilton

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MONZA, Italy Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s Formula One practice debut was over nearly as quickly as it started.

The 18-year-old driver topped the timesheets early during first practice ahead of the Italian Grand Prix; however, he soon lost control through Parabolica, the high-speed Turn 11, crashing into the tire barriers. The Formula Two driver was okay and walked away feeling like he learned a lesson “in a tough way.”

“I learned that I cannot go flat out looking for the limit straight away. Especially looking back, the track was very slippery. The grip was quite a bit lower than expected,” Antonelli said. “I was pushing too hard, for sure. For the next few times, I will just try to build the run more progressively instead of just trying to find the limit.”

Antonelli owned the mistake, but it came less than 24 hours before Mercedes announced the Italian would complete its 2025 driver lineup, making Antonelli the third confirmed rookie for next season.

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Antonelli experienced a rapid rise through the junior categories, including skipping a few stops along the way. His crash in FP1 wouldn’t have been the first time skeptics have wondered: is Antonelli, who turned 18 only a week ago, ready for the step up to F1?

Mercedes feels so.

“As a driver, you have the speed or you don’t have the speed. I’m very confident that Kimi has the speed. Everybody on their journey is going to make mistakes,” George Russell said Saturday. “That’s part of life and part of this sport. I have no doubt Kimi will learn from yesterday, but he’s definitely got the speed to help Mercedes get back to the front of the grid for next year and onwards, and that’s exactly why he’s going to be alongside me in the car next year.”

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Toto Wolff took ‘five minutes’ to decide on Antonelli as Hamilton’s F1 replacement

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Antonelli’s background

Antonelli’s ascent to F1 is similar to that of reigning world champion Max Verstappen.

The Dutchman went straight from Formula Three to an F1 seat in 2015, becoming the youngest driver to ever start a grand prix at age 17. Antonelli skipped F3 altogether and went straight to F2 in 2024 after being crowned champion in Formula Regional Europe and Formula Regional Middle East last year. It came after four consecutive title victories, dating back to 2020 (European karting twice, ADAC F4 and Italian F4).

Skipping a step in the motorsport ladder and fast-tracking a driver’s career isn’t the typical Mercedes approach. With Russell, for example, he competed at every level — F4, F3, F2 – before reaching F1. But as Antonelli ascended, skepticism followed.

Spectators and the media will likely analyze any mistake the young driver makes, particularly when racing for a front-running team.

“One of the main factors is that when you know you have a team like Mercedes around you that really believe in you, and they have been believing in me from a really young age, it really helps you to feel and to cope with this pressure really well,” Antonelli said when asked how he’s preparing to cope with the pressure.

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Marco Antonelli and Andrea Kimi Antonelli after Formula 2 Sprint Race at Silverstone Circuit in Northampton, Great Britain on July 6, 2024. (Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

“Even though sometimes I still don’t cope with that perfectly, I still get the right support from Mercedes but also from my family, so I’m really happy to be with them and really happy with the support they’ve been giving me. Not only in the past but nowadays.”

Antonelli was born in Bologna and comes from a family where both parents are involved in his career, a father (who has experience racing in European touring cars) with strong racing knowledge and a mother who continues to be supportive, Wolff said.

The Mercedes team boss discussed how humility and loyalty are essential qualities for the 18-year-old, sharing that the family remained committed to Mercedes despite rival teams pursuing him. “Marco Antonelli has always been clear: ‘You gave us the opportunity, and that’s why we are sticking with you.’”

And then, there’s Antonelli’s raw talent. There are qualities that you can’t teach a driver, and Wolff reiterated how “it’s easier to make someone calm down in terms of aggressiveness than the other way around.”

“James Allison actually said when (Antonelli) launched himself at the first lap (on Friday), the first braking into the chicane, he had both tires into the grass already,” Wolff continued. “So the difference between free practice and qualifying we have to discuss!

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“But that’s also Kimi. He’s putting the car into the ground, and (to) be able to crush — crush it, not crash it — it on the first lap is a great ability.”

A new era

It can be daunting walking into the sport as a rookie.

They have trained their whole lives for this moment, dreaming of reaching the pinnacle of motorsport, but dealing with the noise is a different story. Antonelli will join the grid as an 18-year-old, the third youngest F1 driver in history when he debuts in Australia, filling the vacancy left by one of the biggest names in the sport, Lewis Hamilton.

Antonelli doesn’t view his promotion as replacing the seven-time world champion but as starting a new chapter in Mercedes’ storied history.

“I think it’s not possible to replace Lewis Hamilton. He’s such a great figure in the sport of today and he has achieved so much in his career. So I don’t want to be seen as his replacement – I am just the next driver for Mercedes in 2025,” Antonelli said. “I’m really excited for that. But he is a really great driver, and he has been really giving some support, so I am really happy.”

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Hamilton has been with Mercedes for 12 seasons, establishing one of the longest driver-team relationships on the grid. The Briton shocked the F1 world when news broke he was moving to Ferrari from 2025. Wolff said he made up his mind on who would fill the vacancy five minutes after he spoke with Hamilton about his decision.

“We won eight constructors’ titles and six drivers’ titles together, and he is the biggest personality in the sport, with the biggest gravitas and international recognition, but he is also the one who has beaten all the records,” Wolff said. “When Lewis decided to go for another challenge, no one can replace him in all of his stature. But that doesn’t mean that the team is not going to prosper with two drivers that represent the future.”


Antonelli debriefs with Peter Bonnington at Monza. Bonnington is Hamilton’s long-time engineer and will serve the same role for Antonelli in 2025. (Pro Shots/Sipa USA)

Antonelli said he remained focused on delivering on his F2 campaign and testing of previous cars (TPC) while Wolff and Mercedes discussed his future. According to Antonelli and Wolff, he has done around 10 TPCs this year, including two at Red Bull Ring (it snowed during one), two at Barcelona, and one each at Imola, Spa and Silverstone. The team boss added, “We will continue with that, because when you look at the blueprint back in the day that Lewis gave, it was a lot of testing to prepare not only for the driving but also going through the race weekend preparation, it’s what we’ve done in the last one. So that program is going to continue.”

Mercedes did consider placing Antonelli at Williams as it did with Russell from 2019 to 2021, Wolff said. The team believed the testing program would better help Antonelli continue his F1 machinery education. Wolff added, “I think the more kilometers you do, especially in a car that is not great, the TPC car (which was the 2022 car) was not our best car, it’s going to get him between 15 and 20 days under his belt, and that’s important.”

Antonelli recently said he maybe wasn’t ready to leap to F1, but on Saturday, he said the TPC program helped him prepare. He began feeling better while driving the car and seeing improvement, such as in the long runs (which he said was a previous weak point). He admitted that he is still learning but added,  “Every time I got in the car, I feel so much better.”

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Mistakes happen. Plenty of the best drivers have misstepped in their careers, especially in the early days. What’s important and will shape the beginning of Antonelli’s career is how he learns and grows past his FP1 crash, making his name as part of a storied F1 team.

“That’s going to be a valuable lesson because it’s not about having fun in an F3 car in Silverstone in the rain,” Wolff said. “This is Formula One – there is a lot of responsibility that comes with it, for the best car brand in the world, for many thousands of people. And that’s why Kimi yesterday learned in a very, very hard way. I think that moment must have been very tough. And compromised George for his day and his weekend, and Kimi knows that.

“But sometimes, it needs to sting. Then it sticks.”

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Why Mercedes F1 put its faith in 18-year-old Kimi Antonelli to replace Lewis Hamilton

Top photo: Sipa USA

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Tiger Woods released from jail after DUI arrest; eyes appear bloodshot in booking photo

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Tiger Woods released from jail after DUI arrest; eyes appear bloodshot in booking photo

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Tiger Woods was released from jail Friday night after he was arrested earlier in the day on a DUI charge following a car crash in Florida.

In a mugshot released hours after his arrest, Woods’ eyes appeared bloodshot, as he donned a blue polo inside the Martin County Jail in Florida.

Woods was seen leaving the jail in the passenger seat of a black SUV after his release on bail late Friday, according to The Associated Press.

Martin County Sheriff John Budensiek confirmed in a news conference that Woods was traveling at “a high rate of speed” when his vehicle collided with another car, resulting in his vehicle rolling over onto the driver’s side. 

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Tiger Woods was booked into Martin County, Florida, jail on March 27, 2026. (AP)

Authorities said Woods “exemplified signs of impairment.” He blew “triple-zeroes” for alcohol but refused a urine test.

“DUI investigators came to the scene here, and Mr. Woods did exemplify signs of impairment. They did several tests on him. Of course, he did explain the injuries and the surgeries that he had. We did take that into account, but they did do some in-depth roadside tests,” Budensiek added. 

“We really weren’t suspicious of alcohol being involved in this case, and that proved to be true at the jail. … But when it came time for us to ask for a urinalysis test, he refused. And, so, he’s been charged with DUI, with property damage and refusal to submit to a lawful test.”

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Woods was spotted on the phone after the crash, wearing navy blue shorts.

Woods was charged with DUI, property damage and refusal to submit to a test, all misdemeanor charges. No one was injured, authorities said. Woods was alone in the car and crawled out of the passenger door after the crash.

Tiger Woods was driven from the Martin County Jail after being arrested for driving under the influence following a car crash on March 27, 2026, in Stuart, Florida. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

VANESSA, KAI TRUMP TAKE IN TIGER WOODS’ RETURN TO GOLF AT TGL FINALS

“This could’ve been a lot worse,” Budensiek noted. 

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President Donald Trump commented on the arrest of his “very close friend.”

“I feel so badly. He’s got some difficulty,” Trump said. “There was an accident, and that’s all I know. Very close friend of mine. He’s an amazing person, an amazing man, but some difficulty.”

Woods has not commented on the arrest.

Tiger Woods was arrested on a DUI charge after getting into a car crash on Friday. (Associated Press)

Woods currently is dating Trump’s ex-daughter-in-law, Vanessa, whose daughter, Kai, is set to play college golf in Miami next week.

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This is Woods’ second DUI arrest within the last decade. In 2017, he was taken into custody, also in Jupiter Island, after taking prescription drugs and being asleep behind the wheel of a running car at 3 a.m. 

In 2021, he got into a wreck that resulted in serious leg injuries that kept him off the golf course for the entire year.

Golfer Tiger Woods stands by his overturned vehicle in Jupiter Island, Fla., Friday, March 27, 2026.  (Jason Oteri/AP)

Woods made his return to competitive golf earlier this week in the TGL championship after rupturing his Achilles just before last year’s Masters (this year’s tournament is in less than two weeks). Woods has not appeared on the links since the 2024 PGA Championship, in which he missed the cut.

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Lakers beat Nets, but Luka Doncic is facing suspension again after 16th technical

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Lakers beat Nets, but Luka Doncic is facing suspension again after 16th technical

For the second time in less than a week, Luka Doncic faces a one-game suspension because of technical foul accumulation.

Only a week after Doncic’s 16th technical foul was rescinded by the NBA, the Lakers superstar picked up another one in a 116-99 win over the Brooklyn Nets on Friday and is in line to miss the Lakers’ next game against the Washington Wizards on Monday.

In the third quarter with the Lakers trailing by one against the lowly Nets (17-57), Doncic was called for an offensive foul against Nic Claxton as the Lakers (48-26) were trying to inbound the ball after a dunk by Ziaire Williams. After the Lakers turnover, Williams and Doncic appeared to exchange words with Doncic pushing Williams aside with one hand. Williams then flailed his arms behind him and slapped Doncic in the throat.

“He was yelling in my face three times,” said Doncic, who finished with 41 points, eight rebounds and three assists in the win. “I just wanted to get out of there. … I didn’t even talk. I just wanted to get out of there. And they said I pushed. My push was exaggerated, which was obviously not [the case].”

Both were assessed technical fouls with 5:12 remaining in the third quarter, and Williams’ hit was reviewed for a possible flagrant, although it was not upgraded.

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The NBA requires players to sit out for one game without pay after their 16th technical foul of the season. But Doncic avoided that fate after the NBA rescinded the foul that would have forced him to the bench for a critical road game last week. Lakers coach JJ Redick said the Lakers will try to appeal Doncic’s latest foul but he did not see what happened on the play.

Last week, Doncic avoided a suspension after the NBA rescinded the foul that would have forced him to the bench for a critical road game against the Eastern Conference-leading Detroit Pistons. Doncic is slated to miss Monday’s game against the Wizards, who have lost 17 of their last 18 games and have the third-worst record in the Eastern Conference (17-56).

Lakers star Luka Doncic reacts to a referee’s call during the second half Friday against the Brooklyn Nets at Crypto.com Arena.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

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Doncic picked up his first 16th technical foul last week against the Orlando Magic after getting into an argument with Orlando forward Goga Bitadze. Doncic claimed Bitadze directed a vulgar comment about Doncic’s family in Serbian toward the Lakers star guard. Bitadze refuted the story, saying it was actually Doncic who said the curse word out loud first and that he was only repeating what he heard.

The NBA rescinded both fouls upon review the following day.

Doncic, the NBA’s leading scorer, has scored 30 points or more in 12 consecutive games, the longest such streak in his career. He has 43 30-point games this season, tying Elgin Baylor and Jerry West for sixth-most in a season by a Lakers player. He has scored 40 points or more in the last 12 games.

Against the Nets, Austin Reaves finished with 26 points, eight rebounds and five assists and LeBron James had 14 points, eight assists and six rebounds.

Before the game, Redick said the Nets game would be like playing on the road since the Lakers had spent almost two weeks away from Crypto.com Arena and had returned home in the wee hours of Thursday morning from Indianapolis.

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Lakers guard Austin Reaves celebrates after shooting a three-pointer against the Nets in the second half Friday.

Lakers guard Austin Reaves celebrates after shooting a three-pointer against the Nets in the second half Friday.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

The challenge was to find the energy to play, which wasn’t a problem for Doncic, who had 24 points in the first half. Doncic was nine for 15 from the field in the first half and four for six from three-point range in 20 minutes. He finished shooting 15 for 25 from the field as the Lakers shot 54% from the floor. They shot 44% (11 for 25) from three-point range.

That the Lakers were facing a Nets team with the second-worst record in the NBA didn’t matter.

That the Lakers were facing a Nets team had lost nine of its last 10 games didn’t matter.

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That the Lakers were facing a Nets team that’s last in the league in scoring (106.3 points per game) didn’t matter.

Lakers center Deandre Ayton, left, blocks a shot by Brooklyn Nets guard Nolan Traore.

Lakers center Deandre Ayton, left, blocks a shot by Brooklyn Nets guard Nolan Traore in the first half Friday.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

What mattered to the Lakers was finding a way to win as the regular season winds down.

“I felt like we were a step slow,” Redick said. “And I told the guys at halftime, ‘This is our seventh game of the road trip. Anytime you come back, there’s a day in between, that’s just you’re in another city until you can get adjusted to the time zone and you get a couple days break.’ So the next two [off] days will be good for us.”

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Notes: Lakers broadcast analyst Stu Lantz missed Friday night’s game against the Nets because of health issues. Derek Fisher, who won five NBA titles with the Lakers, took over Lantz’s role for the game. Public address announcer Lawrence Tanter also missed the game because of a health matter. Jason Barquero filled in for Lantz. “The entire Lakers organization is wishing Lawrence all the best in his recovery, and we look forward to welcoming him back soon,” the team said in a statement.

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Tiger Woods involved in rollover crash in Florida less than 2 weeks before Masters: reports

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Tiger Woods involved in rollover crash in Florida less than 2 weeks before Masters: reports

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Tiger Woods was involved in a car crash on Jupiter Island in Florida on Friday, according to multiple reports. 

The Martin County Sheriff’s Office told ESPN that the crash happened on Jupiter Island. Woods’ condition was not immediately known. 

Woods competed in the TGL championship earlier this week with his girlfriend, Vanessa Trump, and her daughter, Kai, in the stands. It was his return to competitive golf after rupturing his Achilles last year, just ahead of the Masters.

Tiger Woods of Jupiter Links Golf Club looks on before the match against the Los Angeles Golf Club at SoFi Center on March 23, 2026, in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.  (Adam Glanzman/TGL/TGL Golf via Getty Images)

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The 15-time major winner, five of which have come at Augusta, was noncommittal about playing at this year’s Masters. President Donald Trump said on “The Five” on Thursday that he would be at Augusta but not play.

Woods has had trouble behind the wheel in the past. In 2021, he got into a wreck that resulted in serious leg injuries that kept him off the golf course for months.

This is a breaking story. Check back for more updates.

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