Russell calls his title chances over, then adds ‘Never say never’
GPBeat reports that George Russell said he would consider his 2026 title chances over after retiring late from the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, but added, “Never say never.” Kimi Antonelli leads him by 84 points with seven rounds remaining; it was Russell’s third non-finish.
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After retiring late from the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, George Russell said he would consider his 2026 title prospects over, but added: “Never say never.” Kimi Antonelli’s second place behind race winner Max Verstappen, combined with Russell’s DNF, put the gap back at 84 points with seven rounds remaining. Russell had cut the margin to 66 points with his victory in Azerbaijan.
Russell said he needed everything to go his way to fight back, but that this weekend it had not. He described the season as “pretty relentless” and said several things had gone against his side and been outside their control.
Russell was still on course for third during the late-race Safety Car phase before he was forced to pull to the side of the track. Mercedes said his retirement was due to a suspected power-unit issue. It was his third non-finish of the campaign.
Sources 02
- PRIMARY SOURCE‘It’s happened too many times’ – Russell on Bahrain DNFFormula 1
- PRIMARY SOURCEVerstappen wins Bahrain GP in Malaysia as Russell retiresFormula 1
Claims and supporting evidence 5
Formula 1 records Russell’s post-race assessment and its qualification.
These are attributed to Russell as his post-race comments.
The race report gives the result, championship margin and remaining rounds.
Formula 1 describes Russell’s position and stoppage and attributes the suspected cause to Mercedes.
Formula 1 states that this was his third non-finish.
Corrections and updates to this story
Russell says Sepang podium looked certain before late retirement
Update: clarified that Russell said a podium had looked very certain, located his retirement in the closing stages at Sepang, and avoided presenting the conflicting reports of his championship wording as a settled assessment.
Russell calls his title chances over, then adds ‘Never say never’
Update: Russell has now said he would consider his title chances over, while adding “Never say never.” This adds his latest qualified assessment and does not present it as a settled outcome of the championship.
Russell calls his title chances over, then adds ‘Never say never’
Update: Added Antonelli’s 84-point lead with seven rounds remaining and noted that Russell’s retirement was his third non-finish of the campaign.
Russell calls his title chances over, then adds ‘Never say never’
Manual editorial correction: the Dutch text now correctly says Russell’s championship deficit increased from 66 to 84 points. / Handmatige redactionele correctie: de Nederlandse tekst vermeldt nu juist dat Russells WK-achterstand opliep van 66 naar 84 punten.
This article was produced with AI assistance. Source references make its supporting evidence traceable.