The Italian became F1’s youngest world champion after clinching the drivers’ title in Mexico last week

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff may still be reluctant to compare Kimi Antonelli to Ayrton Senna but, after a week immersed in the late Brazilian driver’s legacy and family, he suggested there may be room for a “Senninha” after all.

Antonelli spent time with members of Senna’s family ahead of Sunday’s São Paulo Grand Prix, sat in the cockpit of the triple world champion’s 1986 Lotus and visited his grave before racing at Interlagos, where Senna remains a ubiquitous presence.

The 20-year-old Italian became Formula One’s youngest world champion after clinching the drivers’ title in Mexico last week.

While Wolff again cautioned against measuring Antonelli against the Brazilian great, he said members of the Senna family had jokingly embraced the Italian as a potential “Senninha”, or “Little Senna”.

“Comparing Kimi to Senna, I was always not very keen in having this comparison,” Wolff told reporters. “Because, you know, Senna is a giant of the sport. Who he was as a person, who he was as a racing driver.

“And I feel that setting these standards for a 20-year-old driver is a lot of pressure, and that’s why I want to not compare him at that stage.”

But the Austrian struck a lighter tone when discussing Antonelli’s reception in Brazil.

“It’s sweet to see how the Senna family embraces him. They say that it’s the first time that it looks like there is a second Senninha. That is the first time that you can see, ‘Okay, you know, he’s a little bit like him’.

“But maybe at that stage he’s a Senninha and not a Senna yet. So let the Senninha develop, let him become a Senna.”

The remark carried particular resonance in Brazil, where “Senninha” is also the name of a hugely popular comic book character inspired by Senna and launched only months before the driver’s death at Imola in 1994.

Antonelli had spoken warmly to Reuters earlier in the week about Senna’s influence on his career, describing the Brazilian as a childhood hero whose dedication, passion and empathy inspired him from an early age.

The Italian’s own Sao Paulo story, however, did not end with the fairytale victory many fans had hoped for.

Starting strongly and taking the lead from second on the grid, Antonelli looked on course to win before spinning at Turn One, the famous Senna “S”.

He eventually finished fifth as McLaren’s Lando Norris won the race. Mercedes, nevertheless, secured the constructors’ championship.

“I’m really disappointed for the race, and very angry to be fair,” Antonelli told reporters. “But I’m going to put all this aside for now because the team clinched the title.

“We were on for the win ... The spin came, which still is something I need to look at, because I don’t know why I lost the rear so quickly,” he added.