Russell says he and Antonelli must be “smart” about fights to avoid throwing wins away | Formula 1

George Russell says Mercedes’ two drivers must take care not to fight each other so hard they hand victories to their rivals.

Ferrari ended Mercedes’ unbeaten run in this year’s grands prix at the last round in Catalunya. Lewis Hamilton hit the front through the combination of a different strategy, a fortuitously-timed Virtual Safety Car period and the time Russell and team mate Andrea Kimi Antonelli lost fighting each other.

Following the race Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff suggested they might have to forbid their drivers from fighting each other in order to avoid becoming vulnerable to their rivals during races. Russell also believes he and Antonelli need to be more careful not to lose time as Ferrari has become a greater threat.

“It’s clear that the win for the team is the priority,” he said. “It doesn’t matter which driver.

“You saw in Canada, Kimi and I fought really hard, but we were pulling away from everybody else. So the win of the team was not under threat.

“But then you look in Barcelona and suddenly you have another driver who’s in the fight. Lewis had the Safety Car, this helped a lot: without the Safety Car, Kimi and I were losing time together and it would have given the opportunity to Ferrari to win.

“That is when we need to be smart as team mates and it’s very clear the team wants to win the race and it doesn’t matter if it’s myself or Kimi.”

Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and go ad-free

Antonelli passed Russell late in the race, only to retire one lap later with a battery problem. Mercedes later revealed Russell had suffered a handling imbalance after an error at his second pit stop.

Despite losing victory to Hamilton, who remains ahead of him in the championship, Russell said he was pleased with his performance in Spain.

“Spain was a weekend I was very happy about on Friday and Saturday because it’s been a real tough run of form for me, both with things outside of my control but also things within my control. It hadn’t been good enough.

“I went with a more simple mindset into Barcelona. I was really quick in qualifying and over the course of the whole weekend. Unfortunately we had an issue with the front wing in the race which compromised us quite a lot and Ferrari capitalised.”

2026 Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix

• Russell says he and Antonelli must be “smart” about fights to avoid throwing wins away
• Hamilton not thinking of eighth title yet after breakthrough Ferrari victory
• Stats: Britain’s 12th podium sweep gives it the most of any country
• Ferrari’s livery isn’t red enough for Hamilton
• ‘There were definitely moments I thought ‘maybe you do lose it” – Hamilton

Browse all 2026 Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix articles