George Russell has revealed that Mercedes will turn Kimi Antonelli’s enforced trip to the back of the grid at Monza into a tactical advantage in qualifying, with the Italian lined up to provide his team-mate with a potentially crucial tow during Saturday’s session.
With Antonelli already condemned to start the Italian Grand Prix from the rear after taking a grid penalty for a full power unit change, Mercedes has little reason not to deploy the championship leader in a supporting role as Russell bids to snatch pole position at the Temple of Speed. .
Monza’s long straights typically make the circuit particularly well suited to slipstreaming tactics, with one Mercedes potentially punching a hole through the air for the other and delivering a useful top-speed gain.
Asked whether Antonelli would play the role of the willing accomplice in qualifying, Russell could barely hide his enthusiasm, initially responding with a smile: “I hope so”.
The Mercedes driver readily confirmed that the idea is already part of the team’s thinking, adding: “they offered it” and “we’ll go for it, see if it works”.
Russell is nevertheless aware that the modern F1 cars’ aerodynamic configuration means the benefit may not be quite as dramatic as it once was.
“It’s not maybe as powerful as it once was with the wings open in [Straight Mode] the whole time, but we’ll work as a team. That’s how we do things,” he said.
With Antonelli destined for the rear of the grid regardless of his qualifying result, the arrangement could represent a neat piece of tactical business for Mercedes.
The Italian can concentrate on giving Russell a tow without sacrificing a meaningful starting position of his own, while Russell gets an extra weapon in what is expected to be a fiercely contested fight for the front row.
Russell refuses to let title battle distract him
Yet Russell insists Antonelli’s penalty – or their increasingly significant championship battle – will not alter his own approach. Instead, the 28-year-old says his attention remains firmly fixed on extracting more from himself and the W17.
“For me, it doesn’t change anything, because I always want to focus on myself, focus on my limitations and the areas I want to improve,” he said.
“I always said it doesn’t matter if I have a seven-time World Champion as my team mate or a rookie. The job is still the same, so my approach will be exactly the same.”
©Mercedes
Russell also believes he has emerged from the summer break in better shape, although Mercedes faces an increasingly formidable challenge from its rivals.
“I think I’m feeling much better since the summer break, and hoping just to continue building on that momentum,” he added.
“Of course, we know we’ve got fierce competition at the moment with McLaren and Ferrari bringing upgrades. We’re still on the back foot in terms of bringing these upgrades to the car.”
“We know in that interim it’s not going to be as straightforward as it once was, but hoping to fight for pole and the win again.”
And Russell is refusing to crown a favourite before the Monza battle even begins.
With McLaren arriving on the back of consecutive victories in Hungary and the Netherlands, Ferrari introducing upgrades on home soil and Red Bull carrying formidable power-unit credentials, the Mercedes driver sees an unusually open contest.
“We can say all we want [about the pecking order], but we’ll soon find out,” he commented. “I think there will be a lot of tough competition.”
“The momentum is with McLaren right now. Ferrari has upgrades this weekend. We know Red Bull has a strong power unit. So, I honestly think this weekend it could be between any of the top-four teams, but I hope it’s us.”
Keep up to date with all the F1 news via X and Facebook
