Kimi Antonelli continues to lead the 2026 Formula 1 championship with a comfortable advantage, but Toto Wolff acknowledged that Mercedes needs to be alert to McLaren’s recovery. The head of the German team sees similarities with Max Verstappen’s surge in the final stretch of 2025.
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Antonelli is 59 points ahead of George Russell and Lewis Hamilton, while Lando Norris is 83 points behind the leader. McLaren, however, left the Hungary and Netherlands rounds with two wins, reigniting the championship battle.
The scenario is reminiscent of what happened with Verstappen in 2025. After last year’s Dutch GP, the Red Bull Racing driver was 104 points behind Oscar Piastri but managed to reduce the gap impressively and even threatened the title, finishing the season just two points behind the champion, Norris.
Wolff also highlighted a limitation faced by Mercedes in car development. After the race in Zandvoort, the executive stated that the team did not have the money to keep up with the update pace of McLaren and Ferrari, due to the ‘financial reality of the spending cap,’ and recalled that Mercedes’ last major update was introduced at the Canadian GP in May.
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Despite this, Mercedes maintains a significant lead in the constructors’ championship, with 87 points over Ferrari and 162 over McLaren. Asked about a possible reaction from Norris, Wolff said: “Absolutely aware of that, but it’s not just Norris, we also have a 59-point gap to Lewis.”
The executive continued: “It’s going to be tough, and it could get tighter, so the team has to do the ideal job every weekend, in every session,” Wolff concluded.
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