Mercedes F1 chief warns 'tough' challenge awaits after summer break

George Russell, Kimi Antonelli at the Japanese GP press conference — Photo: © IMAGO

Mercedes

Mercedes F1 chief expects season to get even harder in face of Ferrari threat

Bradley Lord has claimed that the team have 'done the easy bit' of the season

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Saturday 1 August 2026 12:25

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Mercedes deputy team principal Bradley Lord has said that the team have only done the 'easy bit' of F1 2026, as they chase two world championship titles.

Mercedes have had the dominant chassis in the sport since new regulations came sweeping in at the start of the year, and their power unit isn't bad either, with the team picking up eight of the first 11 grand prix wins.

They also have 10 of 11 poles, with teenage superstar Kimi Antonelli excelling to become the youngest ever leader of the drivers' championship.

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He currently leads those standings by 50 points to former Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton, while Antonelli's team-mate George Russell is a further nine points back having picked up two grand prix wins himself.

Mercedes have a 72-point lead at the top of the constructors' championship, too, but there is real frustration that they have not been able to maximise results in the first half of the year, and have left Ferrari not that far behind in both championship fights.

A plethora of reliability issues has meant that there has often just been one car scoring points during race weekends, allowing Ferrari to keep in touch in the constructors' standings through consistent results.

Mercedes still have a huge fight on their hands to secure both championships, particularly with their most dominant phase of the season looking to be over, with Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull all showing strong pace in recent weeks.

Now, Lord has conceded that there is still a long way to go, and that they are approaching the toughest months of the year.

Lord wary of rival threat

Mercedes are approaching a 14-day summer shutdown, enforced by F1 to ensure that all team members and drivers get a proper break over the summer.

"We're coming in to the summer break, obviously, we're halfway through the year," Lord told the Silver Arrows podcast.

"But we've almost done the easy bit. The tough bit comes after the summer once the pressure comes, once the races start counting down, once we start doing the big chunks of flyaway races where the race team are away from the factory for a long time, the cars and componentry are away from the factory.

"You're trying to introduce upgrades while you're on the other side of the world rather than an hour and a half's flight away. So all of that brings added challenge."

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F1 Mercedes George Russell Kimi Antonelli Bradley Lord