George Russell has pointed out that his characteristic smooth and precise driving approach does not translate well to the low‑grip environment of the Miami International Autodrome, which he believes explains the sizable time gap he has to his Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli at the Florida round. Antonelli, the 19‑year‑old Italian, currently sits seven points ahead of Russell at the top of the Drivers' Championship after securing an impressive pole position for Sunday’s Miami Grand Prix, edging his teammate by nearly four‑tenths of a second and leaving the Brit to start from fifth on the grid.
The weekend’s results have been a clear continuation of the pattern that emerged during the qualifying sessions. Antonelli posted a second‑place finish in the Sprint Qualifying on Friday, while Russell could only manage sixth. In the Sprint race itself Antonelli, despite a shaky start, recovered to cross the line in fourth place, finishing four seconds ahead of Russell. However, a five‑second penalty for repeatedly exceeding the track limits dropped him to sixth, behind both Russell and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
Speaking to Sky Sports F1 after qualifying, Russell explained his difficulty on circuits that offer little adhesion: “I just struggle on these low‑grip circuits, so here in Miami, Zandvoort, Brazil,” he said. He added that the problem is not isolated to Miami alone, noting that out of the 24 venues on the calendar there are three tracks that act as outliers for his style, with Miami ranking at the top of that list.
Russell described himself as a driver who prefers a smooth, precise line: “I’m quite a smooth, precise driver. That’s always been my style.
On these tracks you have to be happy with the car just sliding.” He contrasted this with the demands of a track that forces the car to operate on the edge, where tyre temperatures soar, pressures rise, and grip evaporates. “It’s like you have a set of 200‑lap old tyres on your car and you go around and it’s just sliding, over‑steer and under‑steer.
That’s the same for everyone. It’s so hot, the tyre pressures are high, the grip is really low, so it doesn’t feel that pleasant, whereas tracks like Saudi have super high grip,” he explained.
After winning the season‑opening Australian Grand Prix from pole, Russell found himself trailing Antonelli, who had already collected poles and victories in China and Japan, establishing a nine‑point lead before the calendar paused for five weeks due to the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian rounds. The hiatus amplified the narrative that Russell, widely regarded as a pre‑season favourite for the championship, was being out‑performed by his much less experienced teammate after just three rounds.
Although Russell did reduce his deficit in the Miami Sprint, the improvement was largely the result of an unforced error by Antonelli, who had been faster overall. Russell made it clear that he would not approach the Sunday race with a mindset of “damage limitation.” With the start time moved three hours earlier to 6 p.m. UK time because of a forecast of thunderstorms, he said: “I’m not thinking damage limitation.
I’m just going out there to maximise the result. That was the same in the Sprint. Tomorrow is a different day with weather on the radar, and we saw again with the race starts, everything can change in the first few hundred metres.” Naomi Schiff of Sky Sports F1 predicted that Russell would be "irritated" after finishing behind Antonelli for a third consecutive qualifying session. She commented: “The worst thing you see is your teammate making more of a gap, going out every session and being quicker than him.
And regardless of whether it’s a driving‑style thing or not, if he ends up in a head‑to‑head battle with his teammate, he’s got to be better than him every time he goes out there. It might swing around again, but obviously George is going to be irritated by that.” Schiff also praised Russell’s consistency, noting that while he may lack outright pace this weekend, his ability to consistently score points will serve him well over a long season. Former world champion Jenson Button added his perspective, highlighting the challenges a precision driver faces when forced to slide into corners: “When you’re a precision driver, it’s really difficult when you find yourself sliding into a corner and you can’t pick out the apex as you want, or the exit.
And it’s also worse here because there are other teams that are competitive. He’s got the McLarens in front, he’s got the Ferraris and Max in a Red Bull.” Antonelli, after admitting to making too many mistakes in the Sprint, expressed satisfaction with the lap that secured him pole. He explained that his pole‑winning effort came from the first of two flying laps in Q3; the second attempt was compromised by an error at the first corner.
“It hasn’t been easy this weekend – very hot, track very slippery, and also this track is not easy to put all the sectors together,” Antonelli told Sky Sports F1. “I think I was happy with my lap.
Maybe there was a little bit more on the table, but we don’t know because I didn’t even do one corner. I’m happy with the performance, especially this weekend where with the others bringing big upgrades, it has been a bit more difficult for us, but the team did a tremendous job.” The Miami event also features a packed schedule for fans: the F2 Feature Race at 2.25 p.m., the Grand Prix build‑up at 4 p.m., the main race at 6 p.m., followed by post‑race analysis and reaction shows.
Viewers can stream the action live on Sky Sports F1 via NOW, with no contract required and the option to cancel at any time. In summary, Russell’s struggle in Miami stems from a mismatch between his smooth‑driving philosophy and the circuit’s low‑grip, high‑temperature conditions. Antonelli’s aggressive, slide‑friendly style currently gives him an edge, allowing the young Italian to lead the championship despite his relative inexperience.
As the season progresses, Russell will need to adapt his approach or find a way to extract more performance from the car on such demanding tracks if he hopes to close the gap and contend for the title.