George Russell has spoken “from the heart” in a social media post addressing his failure to win the Formula 1 World Championship.
The Mercedes driver’s slim mathematical chance of taking a maiden championship were finally eradicated at the Mexico City Grand Prix on Sunday.
After starting second, Russell dropped back immediately, and compounded his misery with earning a 10-second time penalty for punting off Isack Hadjar’s Red Bull.
With front wing problems plaguing him thereafter, Russell finished sixth, with teammate Andrea Kimi Antonelli finishing third to confirm his victoy in the title.
The defeat will have been particularly gutting for Russell, who went into the season as overwhelming favourite due to his characteristic consistency and the strength of the Mercedes package.
But in a post across his social media platforms, Russell acknowledged that his own performances have not, for the most part, been good enough, and will aim to end the season well and “rediscover” his lost form.
“Now feels like a pretty suitable moment to speak from the heart,” he wrote. “This season started off exactly how I had hoped but it very quickly unravelled with tough luck and poor performances. It’s been the first proper season of my career where I’ve had more bad days than good. Has it been tough to deal with? Yes, very. Has it been tough to pick myself up week in, week out? Yes, very. Confusion at times? Often. All I know is that I’ve given it my all and 2026 was not meant to be my year.
“I want to sincerely congratulate Kimi on what has been an absolutely incredible season. You truly deserve the Championship.
“Thank you to the team for producing the best car and power unit this season; it’s been inspiring to see everyone coming together over four tough years to bring Mercedes back to the top.
“Now, all I can promise is that for the rest of this season, and into the next one, I will be giving my absolute all to rediscover the performance I have been capable of producing for the majority of my career and fingers crossed a little bit of luck returns.
“Thanks for all the support.”
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