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Kimi Antonelli dyes hair Italian flag colours at Mercedes factory

The Formula 1 champion fulfilled a promise made earlier in the season by arriving at Brackley with green, white and red hair.

By , Sports writer

· 2 min read

Andrea Kimi Antonelli
Andrea Kimi Antonelli (file photo) Photo: Peter Menzel / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0

Andrea Kimi Antonelli visited the Mercedes factory with Italian flag hair after winning the 2026 Formula 1 World Drivers' Championship. Mercedes shared a video of the moment showing Toto Wolff and George Russell laughing.

Key takeaways

  • Antonelli arrived at Mercedes' Brackley factory with green, white and red hair
  • He won the drivers' championship in Mexico with four races still to go
  • Mercedes won the constructors' title at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix
  • Antonelli became F1's youngest world champion at 20
  • Mercedes posted a video of the factory visit on social media on Wednesday

com reported. The newly crowned Formula 1 world champion fulfilled a promise he made earlier in the season as Mercedes celebrated its title double at its headquarters.

The team posted a video of the moment on social media on Wednesday, showing Antonelli meeting team members to laughter, with Toto Wolff and George Russell alongside him also laughing at his new look. Mercedes captioned the post: “Kimi did it.

” Grande Premio reported that Wolff initially stared at Antonelli in disbelief before questioning whether the colours represented the Italian flag, then jokingly asked if he had actually paid for the colouring. Russell also appeared amused by his teammate’s appearance.

Background

Antonelli had promised to dye his hair if he became world champion.

Before the Sao Paulo Grand Prix, he told La Gazzetta dello Sport that he was definitely going to do it but was unsure of the timing, saying he had the cans and was deciding whether to do it that weekend or wait until visiting the Brackley factory to speak in front of all employees.

He considered two colour options: green, white and red for Italy, or red and blue in tribute to Bologna, his hometown. He chose the Italian tricolour and arrived at the factory with it running through his hair.

Antonelli clinched the drivers’ championship in Mexico with four races still to go, becoming Formula 1’s youngest world champion at 20 and Italy’s first champion since Alberto Ascari in 1953. He has won nine grands prix this season in his second championship year.

Mercedes then sealed the constructors’ title at Interlagos on Sunday, its first since 2021, though Antonelli’s own race was challenging: he spun out of the lead after the switch to slick tyres and finished fifth, the first race of the season where a Mercedes did not finish on the podium.

What happens next

The factory visit marked another opportunity for Mercedes to celebrate its remarkable 2026 campaign after securing both titles. Antonelli’s achievement has strengthened his reputation as the sport’s youngest-ever world champion.

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