Antonelli still washes his own car by hand as F1 title chance nears

F1 / NEWS & CONTEXTNEWS & CONTEXT

Archive photograph: Kimi Antonelli · 2025-10-17Archive photo · 2025-10-17 · Kuyper · CC BY-SA 4.0

The Mercedes driver says he prefers cleaning his Mercedes-AMG GT63 by hand and avoids automatic car washes; he could clinch the title at the United States Grand Prix.

From the GPBeat newsroomPublished · 21 Oct 2026, 23:23 · 1 min

Kimi Antonelli says he still washes his own car by hand at home, even as he heads into a United States Grand Prix weekend in which he could clinch the Formula 1 title.

At the launch of Mercedes’ United States Grand Prix livery, he said he avoids automatic car washes and enjoys looking after his Mercedes-AMG GT63 road car. “I always like to wash by hand, myself,” Antonelli said.

Antonelli arrived in Austin with a 102-point lead over team-mate George Russell. A title would make him F1’s youngest champion and the first Italian to win the title since Alberto Ascari in 1953.

Sources 01