– Both Kimi Antonelli and George Russell have already dropped valuable World Championship points this season – whether due to their own mistakes, lack of performance, or technical defects. While Russell had bad luck on his side in the first six races, Antonelli has recently been repeatedly held back by problems.
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“Whether luck has balanced out or not, I don’t know,” Russell pondered after the British Grand Prix, where the Brit once again benefited from his teammate’s bad luck. “But considering my and his performances in these nine races, I think a 25-point deficit in his favor is probably correct.”
Russell even considers the current deficit to Antonelli “fair” and admits that his younger Mercedes teammate had the stronger start to the season. “He has done a better job than me so far this year, so he deserves to be ahead of me,” says the current World Championship runner-up Russell honestly.
Photo series: Where George Russell lost the most points in the 2026 World Championship battle
“Whether it should be 25, 10, or 35 points is debatable, but that magnitude is probably about right.” Because after his victory at the season opener in Australia, Russell repeatedly struggled with setbacks in the following races. In Japan, for example, he had to give up a place to Charles Leclerc due to a battery problem.
Russell also couldn’t keep up with the pace of his younger teammate in Miami and ultimately followed him, while he retired prematurely in the fight for victory at the Canadian Grand Prix – again due to a technical defect. “Of course, I also lost 15 points in Monaco due to the drive-through penalty,” adds Russell.
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George Russell admits: “Deficit is probably fair”
At the classic in the Principality, the Mercedes driver fought for third place before being handed a five-second penalty due to a faulty timing measurement. However, because this was not correctly implemented by the team, a drive-through penalty followed, which ultimately threw Russell completely out of the points positions.
Photo series: Where Kimi Antonelli lost the most points in the 2026 World Championship battle
But recently, teammate Antonelli was also hit by several problems. As a result, the 19-year-old Italian scored no points in both Barcelona and the main race at Silverstone. In Austria, the Mercedes youngster was also too rash in the early stages, costing him his chance at victory.
In the past three races, Russell was therefore able to reduce his deficit to World Championship leader Antonelli back to 25 points, after at one point being almost 70 points behind. Nevertheless, the actual World Championship favorite does not see himself on equal footing with his teammate.
“I think a deficit of about 10 to 30 points is probably fair,” says Russell, who still has 13 races left to turn the current situation around. In the end, the decisive factor in the World Championship battle will likely be who can endure fewer setbacks and drop the least points – for whatever reasons …
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