George Russell has pointed to his own smooth‑driving approach as the main reason he is trailing his Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli at the Miami International Autodrome. The British driver explained that his precise, low‑slide style simply does not suit the low‑grip, high‑temperature conditions of the Florida circuit, and that mismatch has left him with a sizable points gap to the 19‑year‑old Italian.
Antonelli, who currently tops the Drivers’ Championship by seven points, secured an impressive pole position for the Sunday Miami Grand Prix, beating Russell by almost four‑tenths of a second. The Brit was forced to start from fifth on the grid, a position that underlines the contrast in form between the two teammates over the weekend. The disparity was evident already in Friday’s Sprint Qualifying, where Antonelli finished second while Russell could only manage sixth. In the Sprint race, Antonelli overcame a poor launch to finish fourth on the road, four seconds ahead of Russell.
However, a five‑second penalty for repeatedly exceeding track limits dropped him to sixth place, behind both Russell and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. After the session, Russell told Sky Sports F1 that circuits with low mechanical grip – such as Miami, Zandvoort and the Brazilian Grand Prix – are particularly challenging for him. He said, “I just struggle on these low‑grip circuits, so here in Miami, Zandvoort, Brazil… It was the same last year.
It’s something I want to work on but there are three tracks out of the 24 that are outliers, and Miami is definitely top of that list.” Russell described himself as a “smooth, precise driver” and admitted that on tracks where the car is constantly sliding, his natural style puts him at a disadvantage. He likened the situation to driving on a set of old, 200‑lap tyres that are constantly over‑steering and under‑steering, especially when the ambient temperature spikes and tyre pressures rise, reducing overall grip. “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 the grip is super high,” he added.
The contrast between the two drivers became even starker after the Australian Grand Prix, where Russell claimed victory from pole. Antonelli then responded with a string of pole positions and wins in China and Japan, building a nine‑point lead before the season paused for five weeks due to the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian rounds. During the break, commentators highlighted the surprising fact that Russell, who entered the season as a clear favourite for the drivers’ title, was already trailing his less experienced teammate after just three rounds. Although Russell narrowed the gap in the Miami Sprint, the improvement was largely the result of Antonelli’s unforced error rather than a fundamental change in pace.
Looking ahead to the Sunday race, which has been moved three hours earlier to 6 pm UK time because of an approaching thunderstorm, Russell emphasized that he is not thinking about “damage limitation.” 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.” Sky Sports F1 analyst Naomi Schiff predicted that Russell would be “irritated” after finishing behind Antonelli for a third consecutive qualifying session. She explained, “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 added that despite the frustration, Russell’s consistency over a long season is a valuable asset.
“George is a great driver and he’s not going to love the situation, but it also is a long season ahead. He’s got consistency on his side.
He’s obviously not got the pace this weekend, but he’s always there, he’s always going to score the points.” Former world champion Jenson Button echoed this sentiment, noting the difficulty for a precision driver on a slippery circuit. “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 too many mistakes in the Sprint, expressed satisfaction with his pole‑winning lap. He explained that his best lap came from the first of two flying attempts 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,” he 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 weekend schedule includes the F2 Feature Race at 2.25 pm, a build‑up show at 4 pm, the Grand Prix start at 6 pm, a reaction segment at 8 pm and a final recap at 9 pm, all broadcast on Sky Sports Main Event. As the 2026 season resumes in Miami, fans can watch the live action on Sky Sports F1 or stream via NOW, with the flexibility to cancel at any time.