Montopia Advises Russell to Prioritize Self-Improvement Over Antonelli in Championship Battle]

Montopia Advises Russell to Prioritize Self-Improvement Over Antonelli in Championship Battle]

Juan Pablo Montoya has advised George Russell to shift his focus away from his Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli and instead concentrate on refining his own driving approach if he hopes to challenge for the 2026 championship.

Russell secured second place at Silverstone through a late-race strategy decision by Mercedes, which kept the car on used medium tires under the safety car period before maintaining track position to the checkered flag.

While the result narrowed the gap to championship leader Antonelli, Russell acknowledged he didn’t deserve the finish and identified areas for improvement heading into future championship contests.

“If I’m being brutally honest, I’m not going to fight for a championship if the performances continue along this trajectory,” Russell told F1 TV. “So I’m not leaving this weekend satisfied. I’ll take the result, but I was probably more content leaving Canada after my breakdown from the lead than I am here in P2. I probably deserved the win in Canada, and today I didn’t merit standing where I did.”

During F1 TV’s post-race analysis, Montoya emphasized that Russell needs to examine his own performance rather than obsess over his teammate.

George Russell, Mercedes

Photo by: Simon Galloway / LAT Images via Getty Images

“He needs to adapt. He’s overly focused on Antonelli and, I assume, genuinely wants to beat Kimi. But Russell should look inward and understand why he’s struggling. What isn’t the car allowing him to achieve? He needs to discover how to adjust the vehicle to his driving style.”

Russell’s runner-up finish at Silverstone, combined with Antonelli’s 15th-place result, has moved the British driver 25 points behind the 19-year-old championship leader in the standings. Lewis Hamilton currently sits seventh in his Ferrari partnership with Charles Leclerc, who claimed victory at Silverstone.

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