Russell to examine whether his 2026 setbacks were all bad luck

George Russell says he will examine his own performance after a disappointing 2026 season, asking at the São Paulo Grand Prix media day whether all his setbacks really were bad luck. The Mercedes driver said he wanted a “deep, deep look in the mirror” to work out what he could have done better.

Russell began the year as championship favourite, but has won three races against Kimi Antonelli’s nine. Antonelli has since clinched the title and become Formula 1’s youngest world champion.

One recent blow came in Mexico City. Russell started second behind Lewis Hamilton, but lost power on the run to Turn 1 when the electrical part of the power unit did not respond properly. The field swept past before Russell collided with Isack Hadjar at Turn 6. He received a 10-second penalty, finished sixth and dropped from second to fourth in the standings, behind Antonelli, Max Verstappen and Hamilton. Russell said the technical glitch—not Antonelli’s title win—was why he skipped media duties after the race; he was upset at missing a chance of a good result.

Russell said he and his team had found only six trouble-free weekends among the 20 races assessed so far. The problems seemed to keep appearing on his side of the garage, he said, and they still needed to work out whether something had been overlooked or whether it was simply misfortune. For now, Russell said, bad luck remained the likelier explanation.