Russell says he is not bitter as Antonelli nears F1 title

George Russell says he is not bitter about how his season has unfolded. Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli goes into Sunday's United States Grand Prix 102 points ahead of Russell and can clinch the championship at the Circuit of the Americas.

Russell said his view of the championship had swung throughout the season. Early on, when he had a large deficit, he focused on improving his performance and on what he needed from the car, as well as what the car needed from his driving.

Russell said he had come from 70 points behind to within 25 after Silverstone. Antonelli had problems of his own during that mid-season stretch, but the gap widened again afterwards. Russell pointed to Baku as a blow to his chances and cited the Singapore grid penalty a week later. Reliability problems had also cost him valuable points.

“This season just hasn't meant to be. I'm not bitter about it,” Russell said. He would look back at what he could have done better rather than on events outside his control, and acknowledged that his own performances had also fallen below his standard. “That's the reality of it,” he said.