'Think again!' George Russell hit by Mercedes F1 reality check

George Russell has been warned about his Mercedes F1 team-mate Kimi Antonelli after a strange comment from the Brit last time out at the Japanese Grand Prix.

Antonelli, against all expectation for his sophomore season, leads the 2026 drivers' standings after round three at Suzuka after benefitting from a safety car and securing his second consecutive race win.

Russell on the other hand, only managed fourth although a technical glitch on Mercedes' side prevented him from progressing any further on the restart. A software bug caused a sudden loss of pace for Mercedes driver, forcing Russell to super clip, slowing his car down.

While a technical issue is hardly Russell's fault, the British driver has however been instructed to amend his attitude towards his younger team-mate. David Coulthard suggested that Russell needs to begin 'eroding' Antonelli's burgeoning confidence and another pundit has now reminded the Mercedes man that the Italian may be his team-mate, but is mainly his rival.

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Crofty's words of wisdom

Speaking during The F1 Show after the Japanese GP, Sky Sports commentator David Croft said: "There was a really interesting point, just before the safety car restart where George is on the radio saying, ‘Can I just confirm he’s going to go where we trained, please?’ Now, whether Kimi did or not, he certainly got a better start than George did.

"Why is George Russell asking whether his teammate going to go when I think he's going to go? Is that because he’s a bit worried about Kimi? Is that because it’s still, 'we’re all part of the team here’?

"Is George feeling a bit unsure of the situation? Thinking about it afterwards, I found it a really strange thing for him to be saying at the time. They might be teammates, but they’re rivals here. George, if you think he is going to do exactly what you think he’s going to do, think again on that one!

"Kimi is the sort of driver who now has confidence to go with his talent, knows he can go out there and go for the win. It’s not about the team all the time."

F1 2026 Drivers' Standings after the Japanese Grand Prix

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Written by

Sheona Mountford - F1 Journalist

Sheona Mountford is a motorsport journalist specialising in F1. As a writer and contributor, she covers a wide range of motorsport series from F1 to F1 Academy, responsible for breaking news, live race coverage and in depth analysis of the sport and the culture around it.

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