George Russell Takes Baku Grand Slam to Close Gap on Kimi Antonelli

Mercedes driver George Russell delivered a dominant performance at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku, securing his eighth career Formula 1 victory and his first grand slam by leading every lap from pole position and setting the fastest lap. The 28-year-old's victory helped him reduce the championship deficit to his team-mate Kimi Antonelli from 81 to 66 points, with eight rounds remaining in the 2026 season.

The current point gap is the result of a difficult first half of 2026 for Russell, who took just two victories pre-summer break compared to Antonelli's six. Candidly evaluating his title prospects, Russell admitted his earlier performance was not strong enough to put him in contention, but felt he would have been able to fight if the season had effectively started after the break. He stated that his approach now is to focus on winning each individual race rather than chasing the points margin, starting with the upcoming event in Malaysia.

Meanwhile, 20-year-old Antonelli demonstrated strong damage limitation after a difficult Baku weekend. Having faced issues in FP1 and crashed during Q1 to start from 16th on the grid, the championship leader produced a mature drive, helped by a double safety car period, to finish fifth. Russell acknowledged that Antonelli has enjoyed an almost flawless season so far, noting that there is considerably less pressure on himself compared to his team-mate.