George Russell: Mercedes boss Toto Wolff says British driver was 'distraught' after watching team-mate Kimi Antonelli seal 2026 F1 title

02.11.2026, 08:47 skysports.com

Toto Wolff has revealed that Mercedes excused George Russell from carrying out his post-Mexico City Grand Prix media duties because the British driver was "distraught" after seeing his team-mate Kimi Antonelli clinch the Drivers' Championship.

Russell began the season as the clear title favourite but has been comprehensively outperformed by Antonelli, who finished third in Sunday's race to become Formula 1's youngest ever world champion at the age of 20, with four rounds still remaining.

Russell started second on the grid, but a poor getaway - caused by a technical issue out of his control - saw him drop back to sixth on the opening lap, during which he was adjudged to have caused a collision with Red Bull's Isack Hadjar that would earn him a 10-second time penalty.

Before avoiding his obligatory media duties and leaving the circuit, Russell was one of the first to congratulate Antonelli in person as he embraced the Italian, after eventually finishing sixth himself.

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Mercedes initially announced Russell wouldn't be doing any post-race interviews without providing a reason, but Wolff later explained the situation.

"I saw George after the race on the FIA scales, and obviously he's distraught about the situation," Wolff said.

"It was a great show of sportsmanship to go and see Kimi.

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"I have known George for such a long time. So, I saw him and thought, for a racing driver, this is a catastrophic moment.

"And maybe today the race was a little bit a picture of his season. This was a race for him to win. We had the pace in the car. And we let him down on the first straight. The energy delivery is not what we thought it should be.

"And so I'm very much with him at the moment. I've been in situations where it's very, very difficult to cope.

"So, him not doing the media work, or leaving the track, is absolutely understandable. Him staying would have actually surprised me."

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Mercedes were fined €5,000 (£4,173) by the FIA for Russell's absence from his media duties.

The result also saw Russell drop from second to fourth in the drivers' standings, with race winner Max Verstappen climbing two places and second-placed finisher Lewis Hamilton moving ahead of Russell but remaining third.

Russell is scheduled to speak to the media on Thursday in Brazil ahead of the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.

Formula 1 next heads to Brazil for the final leg of the triple header with the Sao Paulo Grand Prix from November 6-8, live on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports with NOW - no contract, cancel anytime