George Russell prepares for the 2026 F1 Austrian GP after a strong weekend in Barcelona. He finished P2 behind former teammate Lewis Hamilton. This comes as a marked improvement after a DNF in Canada and no points scored in Monaco, through bad luck on both occasions. Barcelona marked Russell’s first finish ahead of teammate Kimi Antonelli since his victory in Australia.
Russell on Ferrari catching up to Mercedes
In the FIA Press Conference, the British driver spoke about finishing behind the Ferrari of Hamilton. Russell said their newest upgrades are challenging Mercedes for the Championship ahead of the 2026 Austrian GP. He said that they made a step forward in Barcelona and that was a reality check for his team.
Prior to Barcelona, Russell stated that Ferrari’s power unit was clearly behind Mercedes. However, he noticed that they are catching up on the straight-line speed.
Russell emphasised that Mercedes must push for updates every couple of weeks to make big steps forward throughout the season.
“Yeah, I definitely think it’s a reality check because Ferrari have clearly had a great chassis this whole season. Their power unit has been a bit behind us, quite a bit behind us, but suddenly in Barcelona they seem to have made a step forward. They were much closer to us in terms of their straight-line speed and, you know, they’re bringing a lot of upgrades, which has been quite surprising for us.
“You know, we’ve brought one upgrade this season so far. We’ve got some in the pipeline, but Ferrari and McLaren, every couple of races, are bringing bits to the car. So, you know, we need to keep on pushing and I think every time a team is bringing a new bit to the car, they’re making big steps forward.”
Cost cap or strategic updates
Russell pointed towards the cost cap as a limitation to more updates for Mercedes. He stated that it is important to be strategic with updates at the optimal points of the season.
He thinks Ferrari has a different approach given their more frequent updates. Russell affirmed Mercedes is still the team to beat, and he is looking forward to another great weekend at the 2026 F1 Austrian GP.
“Well, it’s very challenging these days with the cost cap and you could always decide to pull the trigger and start bringing an upgrade in a couple of races’ time, but you also need to be strategic of when is the optimal point in the season and if you can afford to bring more upgrades or not within the cost cap.
“Maybe they’ve got a slightly different approach and they’re saving money elsewhere and spending more on the upgrades. It’s a compromise and, you know, at the end of the day, we’re still the team to beat. So this will be another good weekend to see if Ferrari are still on that good form or if that was a one-off.”
A simple mindset for the 2026 Austrian GP
The British driver was very happy with his car at the Barcelona-Catalunya GP, until Sunday that is. He pointed out that he has had some struggles with the reliability and feeling with the car across Canada and Monaco. Russell said his success in Barcelona was from a simple mindset and is feeling good ahead the F1 Austrian GP.
Additionally, he stated that Ferrari capitalised on his front wing issue in Barcelona. Mercedes had failed to tweak it at the final round of stops, hurting his car balance.
Heading into the F1 Austrian GP, Russell wants to make small adjustments to his set-up and work on his feeling with the tyres to get the most out of the car.
“Spain was a weekend I was very happy about on Friday and Saturday because, you know, it’s been a real tough run of form for me, both with things outside of my control but also things within my control. It hadn’t been good enough and I went in with a more simple mindset into Barcelona. Really quick in qualifying and over the course of the whole weekend. Unfortunately, we had an issue with the front wing in the race, which compromised quite a lot, and Ferrari capitalised.
“So, you know, I need to keep on making some small evolutions with this new car, with the set-up, with the tyres, to get the most out of it. But I’m feeling good, I’m feeling confident and excited to have four races in five weeks.”
Russell on team orders ahead of the F1 Austrian GP
Speaking on team orders, Russell said winning is Mercedes’ priority, regardless of the driver. He explained that in Canada, the battle between him and Antonelli was without any pressure from other cars.
He contrasted that with their battle in Barcelona, where they lost time and gave Ferrari and Lewis Hamilton an opportunity for the win.
Russell emphasised that Mercedes will put the team first to make sure the faster driver on the day gets them a win.
“I think it’s clear the win for the team is the priority. It doesn’t matter which driver. You saw in Canada, Kimi and I fought really hard, but we were pulling away from everybody else, so the win for the team was not under threat.
“But then you look in Barcelona and suddenly you have another driver who’s in the fight. And okay, Lewis had the Safety Car, this helped a lot. Without the Safety Car, you know, Kimi and I were losing time together and it would have given the opportunity to Ferrari to win. And that is when, you know, we need to be smart as teammates and it’s very clear, you know, the team wants to win the race. It doesn’t matter if it’s myself or Kimi.”
Reliability issues with Mercedes power unit
Given Russell’s DNF in Canada and Antonelli’s DNF in Barcelona, the Brit said reliability is a top priority for the team. He explained that in a year of new rules, this is expected. From a team that pushes the limits of performance, it’s a difficult line to walk. Leaving it to the engineers, Russell claimed he will be solely focused on driving at the 2026 Austrian GP.
“It’s very much a priority for everybody at Mercedes to get on top of. It’s often the case at the beginning of a new regulation that you’re pushing the boundaries of performance and it’s difficult to know that balance with regards to reliability. So it’s not something I’m thinking about at all, to be honest, when I drive. But as a team, it’s the highest priority for Mercedes and all of the other Mercedes customer teams.”
