George Russell believes the 2026 Monaco GP offers another opportunity to close the gap in the F1 championship battle with Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli after suffering a frustrating setback in Canada.
The 28-year-old will be hoping for a trouble-free Monaco GP weekend following a mechanical DNF that prevented him from fighting for a much-needed win in Montreal as championship rival Antonelli extended his lead to 43 points after four consecutive victories.
Having entered the season as the favourite for the title, Russell got off to a strong start with an emphatic victory in Australia, but technical gremlins and ill-timed safety cars across the next three rounds soon disrupted his momentum. Just when the tide appeared to be turning in Russell’s favour, reliability issues forced him out of the lead of the Canadian GP.
Russell focusing on positives ahead of Monaco GP
Speaking during media day in the principality, Russell insisted he’s not dwelling on the Montreal setback, opting instead to focus his energy on the Monaco GP.
The Mercedes driver highlighted the importance of mental resilience. “It’s definitely needed over the course of a 24 race season.”
He added that he felt he had executed his own performance objectives across the Canadian GP weekend.
“It didn’t take that long to get over the result, because ultimately it was outside of my control,” Russell said.
“I went into Canada with one goal, which was to top every single session. That was an important one, and that’s what I did. I was on pole in both qualies; won the Sprint, leading the race, had a good battle with Kimi.
“I was leading there before the failure, and felt there was nothing more I could have done for Canada, so I ultimately achieved what I set out to achieve.”
“Luck” always a factor, says Russell
Russell noted that luck is always a factor in racing, pointing to recent examples of championship winners who clinched titles despite setbacks.
“As for the rest, that’s part of racing,” he said.
“And if you look over anybody’s championship wins—in F1 or any series— I don’t think anybody in history has ever not had some bad luck at some point. I remember last year, Lando [Norris] had a breakdown in Zandvoort, got disqualified in Vegas, and that’s out of his control.
“Verstappen in ‘21 had the puncture in Baku, and I believe in the crash in Silverstone, they both could’ve been out—he was the one who went out, and his rival won the race.
“So these things can always happen in motorsport.”
He added that Antonelli could just as easily encounter setbacks before the end of the season.
“I don’t think Kimi will be standing here at the end of the season saying he didn’t have some bad luck at some point. That’s just how the game goes, and I’m not getting caught up in it.”
