Nico Rosberg contends that George Russell is presently fueled by an extraordinary drive to overturn his recent setbacks against Kimi Antonelli, much like the fierce determination that helped Rosberg finally defeat Lewis Hamilton and claim the 2016 world championship after a series of disappointments. Russell's aspirations of clinching his inaugural title this season appear increasingly remote as his teammate, Antonelli, has built an 81‑point cushion at the summit of the championship.
Since his triumph at the season‑opening Australian Grand Prix in March, Russell—once tipped as the pre‑season favourite—has only managed to finish ahead of Antonelli twice in the ten races they have both completed. The British driver has watched the young Italian secure his seventh and eighth victories of the year during the back‑to‑back events at Monza and Madrid. After Sunday's race, where Russell settled for fifth place, Rosberg was interviewed by Sky Sports F1 about his own resurgence after being repeatedly out‑paced by Hamilton the previous year.
"I was driven a lot by the pain," Rosberg recalled. "It hurt to keep losing to Lewis, and that hurt turned into a sort of insane motivation." He went on to draw a parallel with Russell's current predicament. "George is in a similar spot now.
He's incredibly motivated to find any advantage. He works tirelessly because I know he refuses to give up, and he hates being beaten over and over by Kimi.
He'll be grinding hard, but it's a tricky situation because it's hard to pinpoint where his pace has vanished." Russell has been Mercedes' top point‑scorer in three of his last four seasons with the team—twice in a three‑year stretch against Hamilton (2022 and 2024) and once alongside rookie Antonelli (2025). Yet with nine races remaining on the calendar, he will need a dramatic reversal to regain that status this year.
Rosberg believes that Russell's diligent nature will keep him searching for a breakthrough with the W17, even as the 28‑year‑old inevitably begins to question his own performance. "I'm very impressed with George's approach; he's a perfectionist who tries to optimise every facet of his human performance," the former champion said.
"He gives everything he can, and I respect that. But it's also painful for him because he doesn't understand what's happening. He's always been quick, always been on par with his teammate, and now that seems to have slipped away." The former champion described the mental toll: "It becomes painful when you start doubting yourself.
No matter how confident you are, you begin to wonder, 'Am I not good enough? Was I better before and now I'm doing something wrong?' It's a very difficult place to be." Fresh from a loss to Antonelli at Monza—where his teammate started from a penalised 19th position and still managed to finish 66 points ahead—Russell admitted ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix that he would need a measure of luck to keep his title hopes alive.
That deficit swelled to a season‑high 81 points after a disappointing weekend at the Madring, hampered by a problematic Q3 qualifying session and an early Virtual Safety Car during the race. The outcome left Russell essentially conceding the championship battle on Sunday evening. Looking ahead to the upcoming races, beginning with the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on 24‑26 September, Russell told F1: "Just keep pushing forward. It's been a more positive couple of races even though today's result was far from ideal.
It's the story of the season—focus on performance, keep helping the team. We're in a strong position for the constructors' title, but realistically I'm not in the drivers' fight, so I can concentrate on race‑by‑race results and aim for good finishes." Mercedes remain convinced that Russell can rediscover his peak form. Team principal Toto Wolff was asked what Russell is battling most intensely at the moment.
"I don't know exactly, because you could see the speed he had towards the end when he was chasing Leclerc—he was the fastest on track. But after the tyre changes, that pace disappeared.
I just don't know where it is, and we have to analyse it because it's in the car and in him. We need to unlock it." Wolff added that even if this championship slips away, Russell will bounce back and remain a contender in future title fights. "With George, you can have good races, bad races, strong years, weak years, but we're talking about a driver who has already won everything he could have early in his career," Wolff said, recalling that he signed Russell to Mercedes' junior programme in 2017. "Every karting championship, every Formula 3 and Formula 2 title in his rookie year, then a seat at Williams—he's a top‑level driver.
We just need to find what it takes for him to unleash that potential again." Wolff also highlighted the psychological aspect: "If you have a season like his, you're taking a beating. But the great drivers recover, and George has everything needed to fight for championships. Even if this one slips away, there will be more opportunities." The F1 season continues live on Sky Sports F1 as the Azerbaijan Grand Prix kicks off a triple‑header of races from 24‑26 September, with the Baku event taking place on a Saturday. Stream Sky Sports with NOW—no contract, cancel anytime.