Lewis Hamilton has endured a disappointing first season with Ferrari, but Mercedes are finding George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli cannot fill one ‘void’ he made.
The 40-year-old walked out of Brackley before the 2025 F1 season after 12 largely dominant campaigns at Mercedes, as Hamilton moved to Maranello. But the Briton’s first 10 rounds as a Ferrari driver did not yield a Grand Prix podium finish and also produced a mere 79 points.
It marks the worst start to a season of Hamilton’s 19-year F1 career, having never previously failed to reach the Grand Prix rostrum in the first 10 rounds. If Hamilton fails to finish in the top three in the Austrian GP, it will be the first time he has gone 13 races without a podium.
In contrast, Russell and rookie Antonelli have now combined for six podiums at Mercedes so far this term. The Silver Arrows put their trust in one of their own to replace Hamilton in the 18-year-old Italian, and Antonelli took his first F1 podium with P3 in the 2025 Canadian GP.
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Mercedes ‘desperately’ want to sign Max Verstappen as George Russell cannot replace Lewis Hamilton’s commercial appeal
Russell won the 2025 Canadian GP from pole position, while also recording the fastest lap of the race for the first hat-trick of his seven-year F1 career. The Briton handed Mercedes their first win and pole of the year in Montreal, as well, as Russell sealed his fifth podium of 2025.
Yet AS reports that Mercedes are ‘desperately’ trying to sign Red Bull driver Max Verstappen for the 2026 F1 season. Team principal Toto Wolff is still yet to give Russell or Antonelli deals for next year, so wants to capitalise on Verstappen’s deteriorating relationship with Red Bull.
Wolff is not in a hurry to finalise any new deal for Russell or Antonelli until he knows that his chance to get Verstappen is 100% off the table. Verstappen’s £47m a year Red Bull contract has a release clause set on if he is not in the top three of the standings in the summer break.
Verstappen has further release clauses he could look to explore later in the season, as well. So, Wolff is still holding out hope that Mercedes can sign the Red Bull racer, as they believe Russell and Antonelli cannot fill the commercial ‘void’ that Hamilton left by joining Ferrari.
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George Russell is now doubting if Toto Wolff wants to give him a new Mercedes contract
Verstappen is technically under contract with Red Bull through the 2028 F1 season, but his future is often a topic of debate given the 27-year-old has release clauses and the question marks that persist over the RB21 plus Red Bull’s car and engine for the 2026 F1 regulations.
Red Bull’s 2026 F1 rules engine is expected to be behind Mercedes’ new power unit, as the Milton Keynes outfit design their first in-house engine with technical support from Ford on the electrical components. Aston Martin will become the new factory Honda team in 2026.
With Wolff still reluctant to commit to Russell and Antonelli, Red Bull fear the 2025 Austrian GP will be Verstappen’s last with the team as he considers joining Mercedes, as well. A seat in Brackley would give the Dutchman what is widely expected to be the best engine in 2026.
The delay in the Silver Arrows locking in their line-up for next year has also now seen Russell doubt Wolff will give him a new contract for Mercedes beyond his terms which expire at the end of 2025. Verstappen seemingly has the keys to more than just his own Formula 1 future.
