Nico Rosberg says that George Russell is likely being driven by a fierce, almost desperate motivation to overturn his recent misfortunes, much like the fire that propelled Rosberg to the 2016 championship after being repeatedly out‑performed by Lewis Hamilton the year before. Rosberg’s own words echo the sentiment that pain can become a powerful catalyst for improvement, and he believes Russell is now in a comparable position, eager to find any advantage that could close the widening gap to his teammate Kimi Antonelli. At present, Russell's chances of clinching his first world title this season appear increasingly remote.
Antonelli, who has been in superb form, now leads the championship by a staggering 81 points. Since his triumph at the Australian Grand Prix, which opened the 2024 season, Russell has managed to finish ahead of Antonelli only twice in the ten races they have both completed. Those two instances stand in stark contrast to the Italian rookie’s recent streak, which includes victories at the back‑to‑back events in Monza and Madrid, marking his seventh and eighth wins of the year. Following Sunday's race, where Russell settled for fifth place, Rosberg was interviewed by Sky Sports F1 about his own comeback after a season of repeated defeats.
"I was driven a lot by the pain," Rosberg recalled. "It was agonising to keep losing to Lewis, and that pain turned into an insane motivation.
George is in a similar spot now. He will be incredibly motivated to find any improvement because I know he never gives up and he hates being beaten over and over by Kimi. He will work tirelessly, but the challenge is that it’s hard to pinpoint where his pace has vanished." Russell has been Mercedes' top‑scoring driver in three of his last four seasons with the team – twice when he was paired with Hamilton (2022 and 2024) and once alongside the rookie Antonelli (2025).
However, with nine races remaining on the calendar, he will need a dramatic reversal of fortunes to re‑establish that dominance. Rosberg is confident that Russell's diligent approach will eventually produce a breakthrough with the W17, yet he acknowledges that the British driver is likely questioning his own abilities as well. "I’m very impressed with George’s method because he is a perfectionist and he tries to optimise every facet of his performance," Rosberg added. "He’s giving everything he can, and I admire that.
But it’s also tough for him because he can’t quite understand what’s happening. He’s always been fast, always been at least on par with his teammate, and suddenly that edge has slipped away.
It’s painful because self‑doubt creeps in – ‘Am I not good enough? Was I better before and now I’m doing something wrong?’ That mental battle is extremely difficult." Fresh from a loss to Antonelli at Monza, where his teammate started from a penalised 19th position on the grid and still managed to finish 66 points ahead in the championship, Russell admitted ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix that he would need a measure of luck to keep his title hopes alive. The deficit ballooned to a season‑high 81 points after a disappointing weekend in Madrid, hampered by a problematic Q3 qualifying session and an early Virtual Safety Car deployment during the race.
That outcome left Russell virtually out of contention for the drivers’ title. Looking ahead to the next events, beginning with the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on 24‑26 September, Russell told F1 that his focus remains on incremental progress.
"Just keep pushing along. It’s been a more positive couple of races even though the result was far from great today. The story of the season is that I just need to concentrate on performance, keep helping the team.
We’re in a strong position for the constructors’ championship, but realistically I’m not in the fight for the drivers’. That lets me focus race‑by‑race and aim for good results," he explained. Mercedes remain convinced that Russell can rediscover his peak form.
Team principal Toto Wolff was asked what aspect of Russell’s performance is currently the biggest challenge. Wolff replied, "I don’t know exactly, because you can see the pace he had towards the end when he was catching Leclerc. He was the fastest on track. But after the tyre changes, the pace disappeared.
We have to analyse it because it’s clearly in the car and in him, and we need to unlock it." Despite the current struggles, Wolff is certain that even if this championship slips away, Russell will bounce back and remain a contender in future title battles. "When it comes to George, you can have good races, bad races, good years and bad years, but we’re talking about a driver who has already won everything he could have potentially won before," Wolff said, recalling Russell’s rapid rise through the ranks. "Every karting championship, Formula 3 in his rookie year, Formula 2 in his rookie year, then straight into Williams. He’s a top driver.
We need to discover what it takes for him to unleash that potential again. And there’s the psychological side – a season like this is a beating.
But the great ones recover, and George has everything needed to fight for championships. Even if this one sails away, there will be more." The F1 calendar now moves to a triple‑header weekend, with the Azerbaijan Grand Prix kicking off on Saturday, 24 September, followed by two additional races.
Fans can follow the action live on Sky Sports F1, streaming via NOW without a contract and with the option to cancel at any time. Russell’s journey remains a compelling narrative of resilience, and many will watch closely to see whether his inner drive can translate into a resurgence before the season concludes.