Kimi Antonelli's arrival at Mercedes in 2025 is both a "risk" for the team and a potential "danger" for teammate George Russell, according to Red Bull advisor Dr. Helmut Marko.
The 18-year-old Italian rookie replaces Lewis Hamilton, and Marko suggests Mercedes has taken a bold gamble on the young talent.
"Antonelli is a risk, but we also took that risk with Max Verstappen in the past," Marko told sport.de.
"Max was very young when he got into the car, but in his case, he was not in a leading team, so he was under less pressure."
Antonelli's immense talent is widely recognised, but Marko highlighted an error during the Italian teen's official practice debut at Monza last year. "I don't understand why they put him in the car on that circuit, even if he was very fast in his first three laps.
"But on the fourth, he went into the barriers," Marko said.
Former F1 driver Juan Pablo Montoya believes Mercedes boss Toto Wolff's decision to re-sign Valtteri Bottas as the team's reserve driver in 2025 was a calculated move to mitigate risks.
"My reading is that Mercedes wants to cover itself with Bottas," Montoya said.
"He is the safety net in case it doesn't work with Antonelli, and he knows it."
Still, Marko sees Antonelli as a real challenge for George Russell. "If he uses his skills well, which he has, he can be a danger to Russell," he said.