George Russell received a message from Emerson Fittipaldi, amid the internal dispute at Mercedes in the 2026 Formula 1 season. For the former driver and two-time F1 champion, the Brit needs to turn pressure into motivation if he wants to reduce Kimi Antonelli’s lead in the championship fight.
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Fittipaldi’s assessment comes at a time when Antonelli is experiencing a great phase. The nineteen-year-old holds a prominent position after opening a 59-point lead over his teammate, while Russell is going through a period of results below the expectations created at the start of the season.
Russell started the championship as the favorite for the title with the arrival of the new power unit regulations. The scenario became even more positive after the victory in the opening round in Australia. Since then, however, he has only won one more race, while Antonelli has won six races and extended his lead in the standings.
Besides the drop in performance, the Brit faced reliability issues and also suffered from the lack of car performance during much of the first half of the season. Even so, Fittipaldi believes Russell can still bring the title fight back into focus if he manages to handle the pressure better.
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In an interview with the official Formula 1 website, the Brazilian praised Antonelli’s performance and recalled that he has followed his career since his Karting days: “Kimi Antonelli is doing a fantastic job and showing his potential. I have known him since he was racing in Karting, many years ago. I know Marco, his father, and the whole family very well. Marco even coached my son Emmo in F4. It is a great Italian family from Bologna, good people and connected to motorsport,” he said.
Fittipaldi also highlighted the impact of the Italian’s rise in the championship fight: “For the category, it is very good to have a new kid arriving. He is only nineteen years old and can win the championship. He is putting enormous pressure on George Russell, who has already shown to be strong. If George turns this pressure into something positive, as he has shown several times he can do, the rest of the championship will be very interesting for the fans. It will be a true fight until the end,” concluded the former Brazilian driver.
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