Giovinazzi at Mercedes? It almost happened!
F1 News
- GPblog.com
Antonio Giovinazzi is by now a regular on the Formula 1 grid, driving for Alfa Romeo as a driver since 2019. The Italian is part of the Ferrari program, but that could have turned out very differently.
Giovinazzi has been part of the Ferrari programme since 2016. Through Ferrari, the Alfa Romeo driver could also make his debut in 2017. Regular driver Pascal Wehrlein did not drive the first two races of 2017, as he had not yet recovered from an injury. Giovinazzi substituted and did so very well.
Interest from Stuttgart
In conversation with La Gazzetta dello Sport Vito Giovinazzi, Antonio's father, in fact, lets us know that Toto Wolff even came to congratulate him on the good race. "In Australia my son finished twelfth and that was a great result, so much so that even Toto Wolff congratulated us."
But it didn't stop at a congratulations Vito Giovinazzi can reveal: "Before he signed with Ferrari, Toto called us himself to offer us a contract with Mercedes: Antonio would become the third driver in Stuttgart and an official DTM driver. But he has a red heart and made the choice that seemed right to him."