Russell annihilated by Antonelli: “Kimi brings the tires up to temperature, I can’t explain why I was faster than him and now I’m not”

Russell is psychologically annihilated “At the beginning of the season I was faster than Antonelli, now I’m not and I can’t explain it. I haven’t been competitive at all for three weekends, in Canada I saved myself with the last laps in both the Sprint Qualifying and the actual Qualifying. Antonelli brings the tires to temperature better than me, you can see it from the data, but I have no explanation at the moment”. George Russell suffered a sensational defeat in Monaco today in a direct confrontation with his boxing partner Andrea Kimi Antonelli. The Italian driver took pole position, while Russell did not go beyond a miserable sixth position, very far from Antonelli. Russell earned almost four tenths, an enormous amount. “Until the technical problem in China I was always ahead of Antonelli even if my driving style doesn’t suit this car or these cars in general – added Russell – there is a clear difference in terms of driving style between me and him, a year ago it was in my favour, now it isn’t. However, the fact remains that at the beginning of the year I was faster than him and now I’m not. He manages to make the tires work better, you can see it from the data, he brings them up to temperature and from there everything is simpler. I have to change my style driving or find a different set-up, because the one I use right now doesn’t work for me.”

Automobile Magazine – F1 English News , 2026-06-07 02:00:00