Martin Brundle believes that George Russell should be increasingly worried about his teammate Andrea Kimi Antonelli. After years of waiting for a competitive car and a chance to compete for the world title, Brundle sees how Russell now also has to watch out for his 19-year-old teammate. The former driver therefore has only one piece of advice for his compatriot: ‘Treat Kimi Antonelli as if he were Lewis Hamilton at his peak’.
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Andrea Kimi Antonelli is leading the drivers’ championship for the first time in his career, and there is already talk of a first title battle this year for the young Italian. Currently, his teammate George Russell seems to be his biggest rival. A worrying position for the Briton, according to former driver Martin Brundle. “If I were George, I would be more worried now than at the start of the season,” said the current analyst in the F1 Show podcast.
“George worked very hard at Williams and stayed there for a year or two longer, goes to Mercedes just as they lost their dominance, and has to swallow all that,” Brundle summarizes Russell’s career so far. The British driver drove three seasons at Williams between 2019 and 2021, before succeeding Valtteri Bottas at Mercedes in 2022. That same year, the Silver Arrows completely missed the mark when the new regulations were introduced.
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Advice for Russell
“Now, however, it seems again that they have a championship car and you would say that George has the upper hand,” Brundle continues. “But suddenly he has to look to the other side of the garage and think: ‘Wait a minute, this is far from certain. I still have to beat that teenager’. And I think he really has to do that.” The former Formula 1 driver therefore has advice for his compatriot. “These are difficult times for George and he must treat Kimi Antonelli as if he were Lewis Hamilton at his peak and a threat to the championship.”
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