Kimi Antonelli repeats Lewis Hamilton trick as F1 insider claims Mercedes has 'gone away from George Russell’

Kimi Antonelli, George Russell and Lewis Hamilton looking serious at the 2026 Chinese Grand Prix — Photo: © IMAGO

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Kimi Antonelli repeats Lewis Hamilton trick as F1 insider claims Mercedes has 'gone away from George Russell’

Antonelli can make use of something Russell can't in the F1 2026 title fight

Kerry Violet F1 News Editor

F1 editor and journalist covering motorsport since 2024.

Wednesday 1 July 2026 15:59 Updated: 16:58

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In just his second season in F1, Mercedes star Kimi Antonelli is already in the fight for his first world title.

After the Austrian Grand Prix last time out, the Italian teenager sits 40 points ahead of team-mate George Russell, who usurped Lewis Hamilton from the P2 spot in the standings after winning the race in Spielberg.

The championship order could well change again this weekend in Silverstone however as we see the sprint format return to the home of the British Grand Prix for the first time since the inaugural event in 2021.

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But according to 2009 F1 champion Jenson Button, Antonelli may be able to make use of an advantage that former Mercedes champion Hamilton also used during his time at the Silver Arrows where he picked up six of his seven drivers' titles.

As far as Button can tell, Mercedes are already starting to move away from what suits Russell with regards to their car setup, and Antonelli may even have a trick up his sleeve in the form of Peter Bonnington.

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Could Bono give Antonelli the edge over Russell?

Speaking to Kerry Violet for GPFans at an event hosted by global ticket marketplace, viagogo, Button stressed ahead of the British GP that he feels people often underestimate the importance of a good driver-engineer pairing in F1.

During Button's own championship-winning season, he had a young Peter Bonnington working on his side of the garage.

'Bono' as he is more commonly known in the paddock remained at Brawn when Button left and stayed with the Brackley-based squad as it transitioned into Mercedes, going on to become the race engineer for two of the sport's greats —Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton.

What has struck Button so far this season is just how relaxed and unfazed Antonelli appears by the title battle.

However, as we head further into the European leg of the calendar that Antonelli struggled so much with in his rookie season, it could be Bono he looks to to keep him level-headed at the wheel of the dominant W17.

"I think people don't understand how important the relationship is between an engineer and a driver," said Button, going on to explain how this could be a strength on Antonelli's side of the garage that gives him the edge in the title fight between Russell.

"Yes, I do think Bono is a really good influence on Kimi. They obviously have a good rapport, like Lewis and Bono did, like I did when I was with Bono. Obviously, Shovlin was my engine engineer, and he was my junior engineer, if you like. And Shov is still in the team. I don't even know his role in the team now. He's very high up in Mercedes. But I think that relationship is really key to them getting the best out of both of them, and working together to develop that car into a way that Kimi likes it."

Jenson Button won the 2009 F1 championship with Brawn GP in their first and only season in F1

The 15-time grand prix winner then suggested time is ticking for Russell to find an advantage over Antonelli, or at least to try new things with his own engineer Marcus Dudley to find the winning formula.

Button continued: "It does feel that the car has gone a little bit away from what George's style requires and I don't know if he has the backing from his engineer, I don't know his engineer, the backing from his engineer to be brave enough to go and try something different.

"Their driving style is completely different, so you need to try other things if you want to get the best out of the car for your style of driving.

"So we'll see that, also we'll see them both adapt through the season to see what works for them. It just needs to be done pretty quickly, I think, with both of them, especially for George's side of the garage."

Written by

Kerry Violet - F1 News Editor

Having graduated from the University of Sheffield with a 2:1 in Journalism in 2022, Kerry continued her pursuit of finding a full-time position in motorsport through work with the F1 Arcade in London, where she got to meet true fans of the sport and make a live grand prix watch party memorable for them. It was here that she confirmed her dream of combining her background in journalism and love of motorsport, going on to volunteer with the female-led platform Empoword Journalism. Having completed stints as a screen editor and sports editor, Kerry landed her first F1-specific editorial role with GPFans and has thoroughly enjoyed continuing to work closely with the sport ever since. The access GPFans offers Kerry has allowed her to interview big names such as Naomi Schiff and David Coulthard and given her experiences she could only have dreamt of as a young F1 fan.

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F1 Lewis Hamilton George Russell Jenson Button