Russell reflects on difficult season after Antonelli seals F1 championship

George Russell has described the difficulty of his 2026 Formula 1 campaign after Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli secured the drivers' championship. According to BBC Sport, Russell used an Instagram post to congratulate the Italian and acknowledge that a season which began with victory had become the first of his career in which disappointing days outnumbered successful ones.

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Russell had started the year as the title favourite and won the opening race, but Antonelli went on to establish a decisive advantage. The Mercedes drivers have taken three and nine victories respectively. Russell said both misfortune and his own performances had contributed to his difficulties, while crediting Antonelli with a deserved championship. He also thanked Mercedes for its car and power unit, recognising the team's work over four challenging years.

Sunday's Mexico City Grand Prix brought another setback for Russell. He started second behind Lewis Hamilton, but a problem with energy deployment left him short of power as the race began and allowed rivals past. He then hit Isack Hadjar at Turn Six, sending the Red Bull driver into a spin. Russell received a 10-second penalty for the collision and eventually finished sixth.

Max Verstappen won the race ahead of Hamilton, with Antonelli third. Those results dropped Russell to fourth in the championship, while Verstappen moved into second ahead of Hamilton. BBC Sport reported that Russell had arrived in Mexico expecting Antonelli was likely to seal the title, but was visibly emotional during the post-race weigh-in after his own difficult afternoon.

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff saw Russell at the scales and gave him permission to miss his media commitments. Wolff said he understood the strain Russell was experiencing and praised him for congratulating Antonelli. He also pointed to Russell's role in helping bring his younger team-mate into Mercedes, describing the Briton's reaction to the new champion as an act of sportsmanship.

Russell said he would keep working through the remaining races and into next season to recover his previous level of performance. Antonelli, meanwhile, acknowledged his team-mate's bad luck and backed him to respond, saying Russell remained difficult to beat at his best. The champion also identified Red Bull, Ferrari and McLaren as potential challengers next year, while stressing his own need to continue improving.