Antonelli: “It would have been cool to see how it ended” after Russell battle
25th May 2026Kimi Antonelli played down his growing championship advantage after the Canadian Grand Prix, insisting Mercedes still has work to do despite opening a 43-point lead.
Feature image credit: Mercedes F1
Antonelli took victory at the Canadian Grand Prix, but it came without a challenge from his teammate in the second half of the race as George Russell’s retirement on lap 30 ended an intense battle between the Mercedes pair, which ultimately handed the championship leader his fourth consecutive Grand Prix victory.
Both drivers had been locked in one of the standout fights of the season during the opening half of the race in Montreal, trading positions and pushing each other to the limit after Russell carried strong form into Sunday following his Sprint victory earlier in the weekend.
The decisive moment of the race came on lap 30 when Russell retired from the lead at turn 8 following a power unit failure, ending his pursuit for a second win of the season.
Hamilton says Ferrari finally allows him to “feel like myself”
Despite the result, Antonelli admitted the circumstances took some of the shine off the win.
He said: “Not really the way I wanted to win if I have to be honest because it was a tough fight with George.
“It was very intense but I think it would have been cool to see how it would have ended up because we were going at each other.”
“We were pushing and I think we both did a lot of mistakes. I think on my side I did a mistake that was a little bit in a crucial moment when I went back in front and started to pull away.
“That was a mistake that if I could have avoided would have been better. For sure was a tough battle, was intense, and of course I felt sorry for him but we’ll take the win and move forward.”
Leclerc unable to explain pace deficit to Hamilton in Montreal
Russell’s retirement has a big impact on the Drivers’ Championship fight. Antonelli now has a 43-point advantage as he leaves Canada after just five race weekends, strengthening his position in the championship.
Despite having a growing lead, Antonelli was quick to play down any sense of comfort, pointing to Russell’s pace in Canada as evidence Mercedes still face strong competition both internally and from rival teams.
He added: “Of course, we’re going to keep raising that bar because George was extremely quick this weekend.”
“We were really neck-and-neck so I just need to keep levelling up and of course, the Ferrari, Red Bull and McLarens, they are definitely coming back so we’re going to keep pushing.”
Canadian Grand Prix: Kimi Antonelli takes fourth consecutive win as Russell retires
F1 heads to Monaco next time out, which Antonelli believes will be a very different challenge.
He continued: “Next one Monaco, which could be a tricky one, but we’ll try to be ready for everything and I’ll do my best.”
Read more Formula 1 here:
- Canadian Grand Prix: Kimi Antonelli takes fourth consecutive win as Russell retires
- ‘Now it’s all good’ says Antonelli after Canadian GP sprint fight with Russell
- Leclerc unable to explain pace deficit to Hamilton in Montreal
- Hamilton says Ferrari finally allows him to “feel like myself”
- “It came from nowhere” – Russell reacts to dramatic Canadian pole
- Sainz says Williams “underdelivered” after Canadian qualifying setback
- George Russell takes Canadian Grand Prix pole with Mercedes front row
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