George Russell says he has “not forgotten how to drive” and remains confident in his title race against Kimi Antonelli despite being clearly outclassed by his Mercedes team-mate at the Miami Grand Prix.
Russell backed up his status as pre-season favorite by winning the opening race in Australia and the first sprint in China, but then had to watch Antonelli take the first three Grand Prix wins of his career in back-to-back races.
The gap between the two in Miami was the largest in any race this year. Antonelli took the pole and took the win, while Russell finished fourth, 43 seconds behind the 19-year-old Italian.
The result extended Antonelli’s lead over Russell, who sits top of the drivers’ standings with four rounds completed out of 22, to 20 points, with the teenager replacing the Brit as British bookmakers’ favorite for the title.
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2026 Miami Grand Prix highlights.
After the race, Russell said: Sky Sports F1: “He (Antonelli) is a fantastic driver and has been exceptionally fast from day one. He won every championship as a youngster.
“I still have confidence in myself and I’ve been there too. I haven’t forgotten how to drive. It’s just a bit of a tricky run, but we’ve got four races to go and there’s a long way to go and I think we’ll reassess the situation over the next few weeks.”
The end result of the weekend was actually much better than Russell’s. Russell said after qualifying that he considers the Miami International Autodrome a bogey track due to its low grip characteristics that do not suit his exact driving style.
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Watch the final lap drama as Kimi Antonelli wins the Miami Grand Prix, Charles Leclerc spins and George Russell limps home with a damaged wing.
Instead of losing a point to Antonelli in Saturday’s sprint when he finished behind his teammate on the track, Russell earned him two points. That’s because the Italian violated track limits too many times, earning a five-second time penalty that dropped him two places.
Then in Sunday’s race, Russell picked up an extra position and two extra points on the final lap after Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc crashed into a barrier on the second circuit.
Reflecting on Sunday’s action, Russell added: “It was a difficult race. I felt like I started okay. I was in a battle in the early laps but after that there were no hard tires at all.
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Charles Leclerc received a 20-second penalty for cutting several corners on the final lap, which resulted in the Ferrari driver spinning and damaging his car.
“I’ve gotten some ideas over the last 10 laps. We’ve been a lot more competitive. I’ve made some pretty big changes to the differential and brake bias and it’s gotten us a lot closer to what Kimi has been running all weekend and it’s had a bigger impact than we thought.
“It’s not a good weekend. I know this is a really tough place for me. The real test will come in the next few minutes.”
Burton: Russell was probably thinking, ‘What just happened?’
Sky Sports F1 Expert and former world champion Jenson Button believes Russell will be shocked by Antonelli’s form, but is backing the Briton to fight back in the next round in Canada at the end of May.
“I think George is thinking, ‘What just happened?’” Burton said. He was the favorite and fastest player at the start of the year, and Kimi is exceptionally talented.
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Toto Wolff says George Russell will never stop fighting and the 20-point gap over team-mate Kimi Antonelli will not hinder him.
“But the great thing about George is that he’s confident in himself. He knows he’s got the skills and I’m really glad he let us all know that something isn’t right. I think that’s the best way to say that because that way we can fix the problem moving forward.
“If you keep it inside, the worst thing can happen. He’s doing the right thing and I think he’ll be strong in Canada.”
Sky Sports F1 Expert Naomi Schiff said Russell will take comfort in the fact that Antonelli has at least made a few of the same mistakes as he did in Saturday’s sprint this season.
“He’s a very hard worker, but no driver wants to lose to a teammate and George is no different,” Schiff said.
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Enjoy the best moments on Martin Brundle’s star-studded Miami Grid Walk.
“He spent so many years at Williams that he finally moved to Mercedes without a competitive car. Now he has one and his team-mates have beaten him.
“He will be confident that Kimmy has been faultless and will make mistakes this season as well, and perhaps George’s consistency will help him.”
“But he has to contend with Kimi’s incredible speed and the fact that he can deliver incredible lap times. That’s never a good thing, but I’m confident he can bounce back.”
Formula 1 next heads to Montreal for the Canadian Grand Prix and another sprint weekend. Watch live on Sky Sports F1 from 22-24 May. Stream Sky Sports NOW – No Commitment, Cancel Anytime
