– Mercedes driver George Russell still faces a grid penalty in the 2026 Formula 1 season if he uses excess power unit components. But while his teammate Kimi Antonelli already served his engine penalty in Monza, Russell is still waiting – for a good reason, as he explained before the Spanish Grand Prix in Madrid (follow all sessions here in the Formula 1 live ticker!).
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Russell said: “We are still waiting with my penalty for the ADUO update. Because if I had also taken the grid drop [already in Monza], I would have to take another one later in the year. So that would have made no sense for me at all.”
So Russell will probably have to make do with the current power unit specification for a few more weeks: According to information from Motorsport-Total.com, Mercedes could only introduce the update on Russell’s car at the US Grand Prix in Austin or the Mexico City Grand Prix, so at the earliest at the end of October. Until then, four more Grands Prix will be held in Madrid, Baku, Sepang, and Singapore.
Antonelli faces another grid penalty
Antonelli will also receive another grid penalty then. But: Because he has already exceeded his quota, a further exceedance will only result in a five-place drop instead of ten. That was one reason why Mercedes already installed new components on Antonelli’s car in Monza: “So that we don’t get into trouble later in the year,” Antonelli explained in Monza. (For an overview of the power unit components used in 2026!)
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Unlike Ferrari, Mercedes only has one upgrade opportunity through the ADUO engine catch-up program, not two. However, Russell does not consider this problematic: “I don’t think we as a team are under pressure. But it will definitely be very interesting when we use our updates.”
Antonelli quickly made up for his handicap on the grid in Monza: Starting from 19th place, he soon joined the leading group and eventually won the Grand Prix narrowly ahead of Russell, who – without a grid penalty – had started from second place.
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