Lando Norris believes that George Russell is currently going through the opposite situation to the one he experienced before turning things around in 2025.
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George Russell is experiencing a very different first half of the 2026 F1 season than he had hoped for. Considered one of the main title favorites before the start of the championship, the Briton won the opening round in Australia with authority, but has only added one more victory to his tally since, in Austria.
Meanwhile, his teammate Kimi Antonelli has won six of the first eleven Grands Prix and taken the lead in the championship. The Italian now has a 59-point lead over Russell, who is also nine points behind Lewis Hamilton.
For Lando Norris, the situation experienced by his compatriot shows some similarities with his own experience in 2025, but with a completely opposite dynamic.
Confidence evolving in the wrong direction
Norris knows very well the difficulties that can come with a championship fight. Last season, the McLaren driver had a difficult start to the campaign while Oscar Piastri was accumulating victories.
The Australian won five of the first nine races, while Norris himself missed several important results, notably due to errors in qualifying. But rather than collapsing under pressure, the Briton gradually regained his confidence before turning the situation around and winning his first world title.
According to him, Russell could currently be going the opposite way.
“I’ve always put a lot of pressure on myself. I don’t know if George puts a lot on himself, nor exactly what situation he is currently in, but he has always been someone quite confident,” Norris explains.
“Last year, I went from a lack of confidence to ‘What do I have left to lose?’ For him, I would say it’s rather the opposite. He went from great confidence to perhaps losing some of it.”
Everyone must find their own answer
However, Norris believes there is no universal recipe to get out of such a difficult period. Increasing one’s level of demand can work for some drivers, while others need to release the pressure.
“Every driver has to find their own way to manage this. There is no one solution that works for everyone. It’s hard to know exactly what to do in this situation. Should you put more pressure on yourself? Or try to feel none at all?”
Russell has also had to deal with technical problems during this first half of the season. An initially mysterious anomaly on his Mercedes power unit notably disrupted his campaign, before investigations established that he was not responsible for it.
These difficulties have accompanied a gradual loss of ground in the championship, even though Mercedes has one of the most competitive cars on the grid.
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Antonelli increases the pressure on Russell
Russell’s main difficulty remains the impressive form of his own teammate. In his second season in F1, Antonelli has far exceeded expectations by winning six races and firmly establishing himself at the top of the championship.
“He also has a teammate who is doing quite an incredible job, probably better than most people expected,” Norris continues.
“So he is under the pressure of having a very good teammate, someone who pushes him a lot and makes practically no mistakes. And then there is his own challenge: managing to get the most out of himself.”
A situation made all the more delicate as Russell started this season with the natural status of Mercedes leader after Lewis Hamilton’s departure to Ferrari.
Norris retains a lot of respect for Russell
The two Britons have known each other for many years. They notably competed against each other in Formula 2 in 2018 before making their Formula 1 debuts the following season.
Norris also says he continues to regularly communicate with Russell, even if their discussions do not necessarily focus on the pressure related to the championship.
“We always talk. We exchange about what is happening, what is going well or less well and all those things,” says the reigning world champion.
Despite the current difficulties of the Mercedes driver, Norris does not question his qualities at all.
“He is someone I respect enormously and I think he is very talented.”
With still a long second half of the season to compete, Russell will now have to try to reverse this dynamic. And if he wants to catch up to Antonelli in the championship, regaining the confidence he had at the start of the year could be as important as regaining the results.