Kimi Antonelli plans to keep No.12 if he wins the 2026 title

Kimi Antonelli intends to keep racing with No.12 in 2027 if he becomes Formula 1 world champion this season, rather than switch to the number one plate reserved for the reigning champion.

The Mercedes driver is on the brink of securing the 2026 title. He needs only two points at the Mexico City Grand Prix to clinch the championship, with a 123-point advantage over teammate and title rival George Russell. There are 125 points still available. Lewis Hamilton is also mathematically able to deny Antonelli, but trails him by 124 points.

Antonelli has said his immediate priority is to complete the job in Mexico. If he seals the crown, however, he expects to continue using his chosen number rather than take No.1 for the following season.

No.12 remains a tribute to Senna

Antonelli selected No.12 when he made his Formula 1 debut with Mercedes in 2025. The number is a tribute to Ayrton Senna, who raced with it from 1985 to 1988, including the season in which he won his first world championship with McLaren.

Senna used No.1 as the defending champion in 1989, when the number was assigned automatically to the title-holder. Under the permanent-number system introduced in 2014, champions have been able to choose whether to take No.1 or retain their regular number. Lewis Hamilton kept No.44 after winning his six Mercedes titles between 2014 and 2020.

Antonelli’s possible choice would place him alongside Hamilton in preferring a personal number to the champion’s plate. Only Lando Norris, Max Verstappen and Sebastian Vettel have used No.1 since the permanent numbers were brought in.

A first title would bring a new test

A title in Mexico would make Antonelli the youngest F1 champion, at 20 years, two months and eight days. He would also become just the third Italian to win the drivers’ championship, after Giuseppe Farina and Alberto Ascari.

The crown would set up a new challenge in 2027: defending a title for the first time in his single-seater career. Antonelli has moved up a category after each of his previous championship wins. He won Italian and ADAC Formula 4 titles in 2022, then claimed the Formula Regional Middle East and European championships in 2023. He finished sixth in Formula 2 in 2024 before stepping up to F1 the following year.

The stakes in Mexico have also drawn attention to Antonelli’s potential as a title winner, with Kimi Räikkönen backing him to become the youngest champion. His rise has already included significant milestones, including his Spanish Grand Prix victory.