Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has said the team had “no chance” to change tyre strategy for George Russell during the F1 Italian Grand Prix, with the British driver having lost out to Kimi Antonelli.
Anontelli, who had received an engine penalty for the start of the race, surged from 19th on the grid to take his seventh win of the 2026 Formula 1 season.
This came after a tense battle with teammate Russell over a number of laps, the two Mercedes drivers frequently swapping places. A late Virtual Safety Car, caused by Lance Stroll stopping on track, allowed Antonelli to pit for fresh medium tyres.
Meanwhile, Russell was forced to continue his race on the hard tyres he received ahead of the race restart. Overtaken by Antonelli in the final laps on fresher tyres, Russell finished the race in P2 behind his teammate, and now sits 66 points behind the Italian in the standings.
Wolff: “There was no chance” to change Russell’s strategy
Speaking to Sky Sports, Wolff explained that Mercedes didn’t expect Antonelli’s two-stop strategy to be stronger than the one-stop Russell was running.
“[Antonelli] kept his head down, took no risks at the beginning with the restarts, and then one by one. An amazing drive,” he said.
“Yeah, it was, after all, the two-stop was the best. But we didn’t think it was the case.
“So, that was good for him. But today there was nothing that could have stopped him. I’m really happy.”
Wolff admitted that the team didn’t have time to switch Russell’s strategy, even after having realised it was the more effective play.
“Obviously George fought with worn-out tools at the end,” he said.
“So, I’m really happy for the one and two. No, he was on the hard. We needed to go on the one-stop; there was no chance.”
Antonelli’s championship lead also benefitted from a lacklustre performance from Ferrari at its home race in Monza. Charles Leclerc crashed on lap two, taking him out of the race, while Lewis Hamilton struggled for grip throughout and ended up sixth.
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