Kimi Antonelli’s Italian tricolor hair surprises Mercedes at title celebration
NXTbets Pro | Published On: November 12, 2026
Antonelli’s title
Kimi Antonelli turned Mercedes’ title celebration into a flash of Italy’s colors when he visited the team’s Brackley headquarters with his hair dyed green, white and red. The look matched the flag and fit the mood around the team after a breakthrough season, with Mercedes saying Antonelli had kept a promise to dye his hair. It was the kind of detail that drew attention fast, but the bigger picture around Antonelli stayed the same. He arrived as Formula 1’s youngest-ever world champion, a 20-year-old who put together a title run that changed the sport’s record book and gave Mercedes another headline to celebrate. The visit also tied into the team’s recent success, with Mercedes having secured its first Constructors’ Championship since 2021 in Brazil. Antonelli’s new look gave the moment a lighter touch, but it also fit the tone of a driver who has become central to Mercedes’ story in his second season. The team shared the moment on social media, turning his hair into the latest image attached to a title campaign that has kept Mercedes at the center of the sport.
Antonelli’s record
The championship itself carried its own weight. Antonelli became the first Italian Formula 1 world champion since Alberto Ascari in 1953, ending a long drought for the country in the sport’s top class. He did it with four races remaining and after nine Grand Prix victories in just his second season, a run that put him on top before the year had even played out to the finish. That kind of pace made his title more than a single breakthrough result. It marked a season of control, consistency and enough winning to close the door early. Mercedes’ celebration around him reflected that reality. Antonelli was not simply a young driver who flashed potential. He delivered the sort of championship season that reorders expectations inside a team and around the grid. His visit to Brackley came with the title already in hand, and the atmosphere around him matched the scale of what he had done. The dyed hair was playful, but the achievement underneath it was substantial. In one season, Antonelli moved from promising talent to title winner, and he did it in a way that left his mark both on the record books and on the sport’s recent history.
Wolff’s reaction
The hairstyle also connected Antonelli to a familiar racing image. The colors echoed Valentino Rossi’s red, white and green hair from 1998, a nod that gave the look an extra layer for Italian fans. It also caught Mercedes off guard. George Russell joked about the hairstyle in the video, but Toto Wolff’s reaction stood out most. Wolff went quiet at first, then smiled and asked whether Antonelli had been paid to dye his hair. That beat of surprise gave the moment its charm. It showed a team boss reacting to a young champion who still knows how to have fun with a milestone. Antonelli, for his part, kept the tone light by saying he planned to buy a new car to reward himself for the title. The comment fit the scene around him, a mix of celebration, humor and a reminder that the championship has given him room to enjoy the moment. Between the record, the title celebration and the bright tricolor hair, Antonelli left Mercedes with an image that matched the scale of his breakthrough, and with a team still smiling at the way he chose to mark it.
