'Can we already crown Antonelli the F1 2026 champion?'
Antonelli again showed he had the measure of his teammate, George Russell, who was dubbed the bookmakers’ favourite for the title heading into the campaign. At the race in Miami, he finished 43 seconds ahead of the Brit.
5 May 2026
Samson Ero
GPblog.com

Despite the upgrades from the McLaren team, Antonelli was also able to hold off a charging Russell around the street circuit of Miami. While several individuals, including Toto Wolff inside the Mercedes camp, have continued to temper talk of Antonelli being the favourite for the title, the young Italian continues to eke out a lead in the standings and currently sits 20 points ahead of Russell in second place.

Earlier, Russell also responded to being beaten by Antonelli in the intra-team battle at Mercedes. The British driver noted that he hasn’t forgotten how to drive an F1 car. Russell currently trails Antonelli by 20 points in the drivers’ standings, despite kicking off the campaign with victories at the Australian Grand Prix and the Chinese GP sprint race. The 28-year-old, however, is currently without a podium over the last two races and will have his sights set on a recovery performance when the sport heads to the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve for the Canadian Grand Prix.

‘43 seconds ahead of the Brit’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/videos/can...-2026-champion


Has the 2025 George Russell ‘gone missing’ at Mercedes?
10 May 2026
Jamie Woodhouse
PlanetF1.com

Kimi Antonelli who has opened up an early lead at the top of the Drivers’ Championship. Mercedes’ Italian teenage star has won three grands prix in a row to move 20 points clear of Russell. “He has found something in himself,” Hill, the 1996 world champion, said of Antonelli on the BBC Chequered Flag podcast.

“Obviously the talent was there. That’s why Toto [Wolff] and Mercedes have invested in him. But we did see a bit of a wild kid coming into Formula 1. When he went to Monza and he crashed and all these things, and he struggled a little bit last year.”

‘Gone missing’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/george...nelli-mercedes


MPH: Antonelli is ravaging Russell's golden chance of F1 title — Canada is critical
6 May 2026
Mark Hughes
Motor Sport Magazine

Although there’s no need for George Russell to panic just yet, four races in and trailing his young team-mate Kimi Antonelli by 20 points at the head of the world championship presents him with a worrying situation. Given how narrow the window of opportunity can be for a world title, obviously 2026 is Russell’s golden chance. It has taken until his eighth season to get into a title-calibre car.

Early in his F1 career, he was frustrated to have been placed by Mercedes at Williams for three years, which he felt was two too many, feeling he could have been doing justice to the title-calibre cars Mercedes was running then.

By the time he got his Mercedes chance, the team had fallen into the abyss, lost in a blurred vision of ground effect porpoising as Red Bull and McLaren between them ruled the roost for four years. Finally, a formula reset and Mercedes comes out the ’26 blocks like it was 2014 all over again

‘Antonelli is ravaging Russell's golden chance’;

https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/a.../?nowprocket=1


George Russell’s Miami GP struggles deemed irrelevant to F1 title outcome
7 May 2026
Anirban Aly Mandal
Motorsport Week

Kimi Antonelli now has exactly half the win tally of Russell (six) in only his second full-time season in F1. And while the 19-year-old’s rise to the top of the sport has been meteoric, Wolff has refused to count out a “killer” Russell from title contention.

“I’ve always said George wouldn’t be a Grand Prix winner if he wasn’t a killer,” he told media including Motorsport Week. “These things, he analyses them, looks at the data, comes to his conclusions, and the conclusion is that he’s never been quite that easy with the track.”

He believes Russell will come back stronger in Canada, next time out. “He never liked the smooth surface, and that’s it,” Wolff added. “Tick the box tomorrow. He’s looking forward to Montréal, and it’s 18 races to go, many points to score.”

‘Miami GP struggles deemed irrelevant’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2026/...title-outcome/


Russell told what he must do to stop Antonelli’s dominant run
8 May 2026
Tobia Elia
GPblog.com

Speaking on the BBC’s Chequered Flag podcast, Juan Pablo Montoya suggested Russell’s priority should now be finding a way to consistently match Antonelli’s performances, believing that sustained pressure on the Italian could eventually force him into mistakes as he pushes even harder to stay ahead: “I think what George really needs to do is figure out how to match Kimi. Because if he starts matching Kimi, Kimi will try to step even further to keep beating him, and I think mistakes can come.”

“I think he’s quicker than Kimi. Kimi is very good at hustling the hell out of the car, but George can put that ultimate lap together and be very clean. But the problem is, I think he’s more concerned about all the noise with Kimi. And I don’t know, maybe by just getting a one-year deal, his mindset is in the wrong place. When they give you a one-year deal, they’re telling you: ‘We’re going to extend you, but we’re not sure about you.’”

‘Russell’s priority’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/russe...s-dominant-run


David Croft pinpoints when ‘alarm bells’ will start ringing for George Russell in F1 title battle
George Russell continues to lose ground to Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli.
6 May 2026
Lewis Larkam
Crash.Net

“I would want Montreal to come next weekend, if I was George Russell,” Croft told the Sky Sports F1 podcast. “I wouldn’t want to be waiting a couple of weeks, dwelling on what happened in Miami and thinking about how big Canada is now becoming.”

“He won there last year, it’s a track he’s really strong at. And Kimi finished on the podium, so it was a very good weekend for Mercedes last year.”

“But if George doesn’t beat Kimi - with Mercedes’ upgrades that are coming- on a track that he regards as one of his best, and Toto Wolff says is one of his best, then the alarm bells really start to ring. There’s still a long way to go in the season, but this is a massive weekend for George Russell. He needs that commanding performance. But Kimi’s on a roll.”

‘Alarm bells’;

https://www.crash.net/f1/news/109451...ssell-f1-title


George Russell issued ‘alarm bells’ warning after early F1 slump
7 May 2026
James Phillips
Motorsport Week

Sky Sports commentator David Croft also believes the fledgling partnership between Anotnelli and Peter Bonnington on the pit wall is proving unexpectedly effective. “George is not just racing against Kimi, he’s racing against what is a very good new partnership,” Croft added.

“Bono was coaching Kimi lap-by-lap. The reassurance that comes from the pit wall, the guidance that comes from the pit wall. He’s got an excellent comfort blanket, safety net, coach and guru, whatever you want to call it, in his corner.”

“Bono has been there with championship-winning seasons and how to take the pressure of it. He is the perfect man for Kimi Antonelli. It’s not just George against Kimi, it’s George against a partnership, and that’s going to take some cracking.”

‘Alarm bells’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2026/...fter-f1-slump/


Why Montreal could prove a mental turning point for Russell against Antonelli
5 MAY 2026
Tobia Elia
GPblog.com

Juan Pablo Montoya believes a potential fourth win for Kimi Antonelli in Montreal would deal a critical psychological blow to George Russell. "Kimi knows that George is really strong there, and in his mind, he knows he needs to beat (him). If he can beat George there, he has him mentally covered and that's a big thing.”

“The other thing is everybody else that brought upgrades here, one of them struggled with the car. So that's going to be a big question mark. Once you put the upgrades in the car, yes the car goes faster, but it behaves differently. Who's going to like the car? That's another big question."

‘Mental turning point’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/why-m...inst-antonelli