Jan Lammers, former Formula 1 driver and Dutch Grand Prix sporting director, has criticized George Russell’s early season self-assessment. Lammers believes Russell overestimated his position at the start of the 2026 Formula 1 season. This comes as teammate Andrea Kimi Antonelli currently leads Mercedes’ charge.
Lammers noted that Russell declared himself fully prepared to secure the world title after Lewis Hamilton’s departure from Mercedes at the end of the 2024 season. Russell had been paired with the then 18-year-old Antonelli for the 2026 campaign.
Despite Russell’s strong start with a win in Australia, Lammers observes that Antonelli has consistently outclassed him almost every race weekend. Antonelli has become the celebrated driver within the German team, leading the championship standings.
Lammers suggested Russell’s attitude shifted after the recent British Grand Prix. He remarked that Russell appeared to have undergone ‘therapy’ before the Silverstone event. This was due to a sudden change in his public statements.
‘I’m really going to tell you that he had therapy before this weekend. Suddenly he started saying that Antonelli could also drive fast. Well, I hadn’t heard him say that before.’
The pundit highlighted that Russell had not previously acknowledged Antonelli’s speed in such a manner. Lammers noted Russell’s previous stance was that things were ‘just a bit tough.’
At the British Grand Prix, Russell secured second place, benefiting from significant issues affecting Antonelli. Despite Russell’s podium, Antonelli was notably faster and likely would have claimed his sixth Grand Prix victory of 2026 without incident.
Antonelli, who started on pole, experienced a slow start and later suffered a front-left wheel shield failure on Lap 41. This mechanical problem necessitated two pit stops and resulted in a five-second penalty for track limits.
These issues ultimately dropped Antonelli to a P16 finish in the final classification at Silverstone. Russell’s own weekend was challenging, including a Q1 crash he described as ‘weird’ and a straight-line speed disadvantage.
Russell’s 2026 season has been marked by inconsistency, combining early victories in Australia and the China Sprint with retirements in Canada due to power unit failure and a penalty in Monaco.
Following the British Grand Prix, Russell publicly acknowledged the need for improvement to maintain his world title aspirations. His second-place finish reduced Antonelli’s championship lead from 40 to 25 points.
