Racing
© Jonathan Borba
Kimi Antonelli heads into the Dutch Grand Prix still leading the 2026 Formula 1 title race, but the Mercedes driver says his team has been standing still on development since Canada while McLaren and Ferrari arrive at Zandvoort with fresh performance gains.
Antonelli returns from the summer break 50 points clear of Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari and 59 ahead of Mercedes teammate George Russell, yet he made clear that advantage does not mean Mercedes can relax. “The other teams are bringing updates, and in the end we haven’t brought a performance package since Canada, so our car has been stuck for quite a while,” Antonelli said. He added that Mercedes expects McLaren and Ferrari to be very quick this weekend.
That concern is not theoretical. McLaren’s first major step came in Hungary, where Lando Norris won after the team introduced the opening part of what was described as a very promising upgrade package. Antonelli said Mercedes had expected McLaren to become stronger, and called Norris and Oscar Piastri likely to be among the team’s biggest rivals at Zandvoort.
He was even more direct about Ferrari’s threat over the longer run. Antonelli said Ferrari could be Mercedes’ main rival in the second half of the season, pointing to a new floor at Zandvoort and an engine update due at Monza. “Honestly, I think Ferrari will be the main rival in the second part of the season,” he said.
Russell backed up that broader picture, saying Mercedes’ early edge has effectively disappeared as rivals have turned upgrades into immediate results. He said the team had been surprised by how quickly development had moved across the field, with its initial advantage now “completely melted away.”
Mercedes’ own answer is expected later. Reports indicate the team’s next major upgrade is now more likely to arrive in early October after internal debate over timing, rather than immediately at this stage of the season. That leaves Antonelli trying to defend his lead with the same core package Mercedes introduced in Canada. “This race is so important because we have to get the best out of our current package,” he said.
Even with Antonelli holding a useful championship cushion, Mercedes is not moving toward team orders. Russell said before Zandvoort that the team is not considering a number-two role for him because the season is still too open. “The season isn’t even halfway done, and as a team we just need to keep pushing,” Russell said.
Former Renault driver Jolyon Palmer, speaking on the F1 Nation podcast, said Mercedes would only need to think seriously about backing Antonelli more explicitly if Ferrari stopped making mistakes and closed further in the standings. For now, Palmer’s view was that Hamilton’s 50-point deficit and Russell’s own position mean Mercedes still has no reason to interfere internally.
That leaves the team in an unusual position at the start of the second phase of the championship. Antonelli remains in control of the standings, but Mercedes no longer appears to control the pace, and Russell warned the run of races before the team’s own update arrives could be “a bit more difficult” if Ferrari and McLaren keep gaining ground.