David Coulthard has warned George Russell that the title fight within Mercedes could quickly intensify, now that teammate Kimi Antonelli has full momentum. After a victory in the season opener in Australia, Russell saw his young teammate win the following two races, allowing Antonelli to take the lead in the championship. It is now up to Russell to put the pressure on his teammate, according to Coulthard.
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“If I were George Russell, I would declare war on Antonelli now,” Coulthard declared in the Up to Speed podcast. “No more playing the nice guy. We already said it after Kimi’s first victory.” Thanks to two consecutive wins in Shanghai and Suzuka, Antonelli is the youngest championship leader in the history of the sport. Russell struggled with problems during both races, but must nevertheless fall in behind the young Italian. The difference between the two is nine points heading into the spring break.
Can Antonelli keep this up?
“I saw a very good interview with Toto (Wolff, ed.) and George, in which they discussed the race live,” Coulthard continued. “I loved that Mercedes shared that on their social media. It gives us insight into the fact that Toto is there at a certain point to help George. But on the other side of the garage, he is singing Antonelli’s praises: ‘You did it, I always believed in you,’ he says then.”
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Given Mercedes’ strong start and current lead over the rest of the field, it seems that Russell and Antonelli will have to fight out a title battle between themselves in 2026. For now, Antonelli has won the first battle, with victories in two of the first three races leading up to the spring break. However, Coulthard also adds a caveat to the young Italian’s impressive rise. “The question is whether Antonelli can keep this up for a whole season,” he said. “That can be very exhausting. We saw that last year with Oscar Piastri; he arrived in Baku for a race he had to win, but made a series of mistakes. This allowed Lando Norris, with his greater experience, to make the difference.”
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