Kimi Antonelli leads the championship by 66 points with eight rounds remaining and a maximum of 208 points still on the table. To turn the fight around, George Russell would need to outscore his teammate by roughly 8.25 points per round.

Russell heads into the season’s decisive stretch with momentum. After winning in Baku, he said: “I’m very proud of the resilience… there’s been a lot of hard work to overcome some of the challenges.” He has adapted his driving style to the new regulations and feels confident about regaining his form.

The Briton also has a psychological edge at several upcoming venues – three of his eight career wins have come at circuits still on the 2026 calendar: Brazil (2022), Las Vegas (2024) and Singapore (2025).

The pressure dynamics also favour him, Russell believes: “There’s much less pressure on me than there is on him,” noting that championship favourite Antonelli has to maintain consistency while he himself can simply focus on winning. “I didn’t really consider myself in this fight for a number of races… Now I’ve got this big deficit. It can change quickly, so I’m not chasing that – I’m chasing to win every race.”

Source: Formula1.com (https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article/why-theres-still-hope-for-russell-as-he-tries-to-chase-down-team-mate-antonelli-in-the-title-race.61kGTLGO0gcOuFRzwdu3XZ)