George Russell claimed victory in Azerbaijan last weekend, ending a three-month wait for a win and signalling a return to form as he chases down championship leader Kimi Antonelli. The Mercedes driver now trails his team-mate by 66 points with seven or eight races remaining in the season.
Russell said his renewed confidence stems from a better understanding of the Mercedes car, which has helped him feel more in control behind the wheel. “The thing that’s changed is I feel my performances are strong enough to fight for victory week in, week out,” he told reporters. “I know what I need from the car and myself and I don’t really feel lost any more. Confidence is back and it’s growing again and it’s all coming a bit more naturally, which is how it has been for most of my career and not how it’s been for most of the season.”
The Briton started the year as a favourite for the championship but struggled early on to adapt to Mercedes’ all-new car and engine setup under this season’s regulations. He said he had to “consciously adjust” his driving style, which made his performances less instinctive. “I went through a few races where I was having to think how to make those adjustments, whereas now it’s all just a bit more intuitive and a bit more natural,” Russell said. “So what I set out to achieve, in terms of getting the car into a slightly better window, I’m now achieving without having to think about it as much. So I can just focus on driving fast.”
Mercedes plans to introduce its first major upgrade of the season at the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia this weekend. The team hopes the improvements will help Russell close the gap to Antonelli, who has maintained a strong championship lead despite a difficult weekend in Baku. The Italian driver crashed in qualifying and started 16th but recovered to finish fifth. “Last weekend was probably their worst weekend from me of the season,” Antonelli said. “But still good learning from the weekend and it was also a very strange race for me in Baku because it was one of those races where I consciously tried not to take any risks and just drive under the limit which was very weird but it was what I needed on Sunday. I needed a clean result after a very disrupted weekend.”
Russell acknowledged the challenge ahead given the points deficit but insisted he would approach the remaining races one at a time. “I’ve never really felt in a position to fight for the victories because my performances weren’t strong enough,” he said. “But now finally I feel I’m in a place I can fight for victory week in, week out. Of course there is a big deficit in the championship, but there is a third of a season to go and still so much can happen. I am just going to go race by race. I feel more at one with the car and hopefully this upgrade will play into my favour a bit more. So bring it on.”
Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton has publicly backed Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur amid speculation over his future. Hamilton, currently third in the drivers’ championship, described Vasseur as “the guy to lead us” and said removing him would be a mistake. “He’s doing a fantastic job,” Hamilton said. “If you look at the history, how many people have been swapped out of that role… and I feel like it’s in a better place than it’s been before. But it’s not a one-man situation. It’s lots and lots of people coming together and if you want to point fingers, point it somewhere else. There’s people above who are also part of it.”
Hamilton highlighted Ferrari’s progress since their winless 2025 season, noting the team’s current second place in the constructors’ championship despite a power deficit to Mercedes and Red Bull. “We’re second in the championship, a huge improvement on last year already. And that’s with a deficit on power of average 0.4 seconds every single weekend. Some races it’s 0.6 seconds and we’ve still been delivering really great performances. And that just highlights how great a job people at the factory have done.”
The Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia is set to be a test for Mercedes’ upgrade and Russell’s renewed form, with McLaren also expected to challenge on the high-speed Sepang circuit.
According to Yahoo Sports.