F1 champion issues brutal George Russell verdict: 'He's gone missing'

F1 champion Damon Hill has delivered a brutal assessment of George Russell as the Mercedes star continues to lose ground to Kimi Antonelli in the 2026 title fight.

Russell began the season as the obvious team leader at Mercedes following Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari move, but Antonelli has quickly made life uncomfortable for the Brit.

The Italian has emerged as a serious championship contender in his own right, leaving Russell under growing pressure to respond as the season develops.

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Damon Hill questions George Russell form

Speaking on the BBC’s Chequered Flag podcast, 1996 world champion Hill suggested that Russell has not looked like the same driver who impressed so often last season.

“The George from last year, I think he’s gone missing a little bit,” Hill said.

Hill did acknowledge that Russell has had misfortune, adding that 'he had a little bit of bad luck' which 'put him on the back foot', but Juan Pablo Montoya believes the problem may run deeper than that.

“The bad luck, he [Russell] takes it personally,” Montoya said.

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Montoya then brought up Russell’s reaction at the Chinese Grand Prix, suggesting the 'drama' around the Brit walking to the weighing scales with his helmet still on would have been exactly what Antonelli wanted to see.

“If I was Kimi and I looked at how George walked over to the scales in China with the helmet on and that drama, I’m going ‘Yes!’,” Montoya said.

Hill then asked whether Montoya believed Russell’s issue was one of personality and mindset rather than outright ability, to which the Colombian was clear in his response.

“I think he’s quicker than Kimi,” Montoya said. “George can put that ultimate lap and be very clean. But the problem is, I think he’s more concerned about all the noise with Kimi."

Mercedes may still have the kind of problem most F1 teams would love, with two drivers capable of fighting at the front, but the dynamic is becoming more delicate by the race.

If Russell is to reassert himself, he needs to do more than simply match Antonelli on track. He needs to make sure the teenager does not feel like he is already winning the mental battle as well.

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