Kimi Antonelli could be crowned Formula 1 champion this weekend, but while explaining how he spends his time away from the track, he revealed that he still washes his own car by hand.
The Mercedes driver arrived in Austin with a 102-point lead over his team-mate George Russell and has the opportunity to claim the drivers' championship at this weekend's United States Grand Prix. That would make him F1's youngest champion and the first Italian to win the title since Alberto Ascari in 1953.
While speaking during the launch event of the Mercedes United States Grand Prix livery, the 20-year-old explained that his at-home routine includes cleaning his Mercedes-AMG GT63 road car.
"I like to clean my car," Antonelli said. "I never do automatic, you know, with the machine. I always like to wash by hand, myself. Because I love cars, I really like to take care of my car and everything.
"I like to see it clean, so it’s an activity I love to do. It’s a routine."
The United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas, kicks off the penultimate triple-header of the 2026 season. Mercedes team chief Toto Wolff believes the weekend at the Circuit of the Americas will give the Brackley outfit an opportunity to "respond" after two difficult weekends in Malaysia and Singapore.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes
Photo by: Sam Bloxham / LAT Images via Getty Images
"Malaysia and Singapore were difficult weekends for us and we have worked hard to understand where we fell short," Wolff said in the team's United States Grand Prix preview. "Austin gives us an opportunity to respond.
"We will run our latest update package on both cars as we continue to develop the car. The field is incredibly close, so we need to keep moving forward if we want to fight consistently at the front in the closing stages of the season.
"The United States Grand Prix begins another demanding triple-header. There is plenty at stake, but we won’t get ahead of ourselves. The priority is the weekend in front of us: execute well, maximise our performance and take each race as it comes.
"Austin will also be an important weekend for us off track, with a number of commercial activities taking place across the city. At the heart of that will be AMG and the MANUFAKTUR takeover, bringing to life the performance, craftsmanship and individuality of the wider Mercedes family throughout the weekend. We are looking forward to showcasing that and, ultimately, delivering where it matters most: on track."