Antonelli-Russell, show on the track and fury on the radio: “He should be penalized”. And Wolff silences Kimi: “We talk about it internally”

10 years later, another derby In Canada, Mercedes turned the clock back 10 years: it was 2026 but it felt like 2016. The two silver arrows of George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli put on a show during the first laps, engaging in a duel at the limit of the regulations that brought to mind the challenges between Hamilton and Rosberg of the last decade and certainly made the blood run cold in Toto Wolff’s veins. Also because the two contenders for the world title, in addition to battling it out on the track, did not shy away from some piqued comments on the radio. Antonelli in particular – who was the loser of this challenge given that under the checkered flag he moved to third position, thus losing two points in the standings to Russell, instead of just one – appeared extremely aggressive. The battle between #63 and #12 exploded during the fifth lap, as Antonelli forced a very optimistic attack on the outside of turn 1, then ran wide and clipped the corner. Subsequently, in the same lap, the battle heated up again in turn 8: this time it was Russell who put his elbows out in defence, pushing Antonelli to cut cleanly through the chicane, jump onto the grass and thus lose P2 to Norris’s McLaren. Furious radio teams At this point Antonelli’s fury moved to the radio. The Italian, very angry at Russell’s tough defence, even called for a penalty for his teammate: “That move was dirty – thundered the Bolognese – he should be penalised. I was right at the mirror level! I don’t care, he pushed me out and he must take a penalty”, he finally added when Peter Bonnington, his track engineer, asked him to stay focused on Norris in front of him. At this point Toto Wolff had to intervene directly to try to reassure Antonelli by inviting him to “stay focused on driving and not complain on the radio”. But the situation remained particularly tense even after the checkered flag. In fact, at the end of the Sprint Antonelli teased the team again: “If we have to race like this, it’s good to know”, said the Bolognese. “It’s not the first time we’ve talked about this. We talk about it internally, not on the radio, okay?”, the team principal froze him.

Automobile Magazine – F1 English News , 2026-05-24 02:51:00