George Russell admits to Mercedes’ inferiority against McLaren

According to George Russell, while the team is happy with its car, there is something McLaren has figured out that his team hasn't. Russell spoke about the disadvantage the Brackley-based team is currently at against McLaren, who he feels is farther ahead than the rest of the grid. While the Mercedes driver currently sits in third place in the championship standings, he feels that it's a challenge to be as strong as the Woking-based team.

Russell did say that the team is happy with the challenger Mercedes has built for the 2025 season, but the only thing that matters is track performance against other teams, and so far, McLaren has shown to be very difficult to beat.

"We’ve never been more confident about our package, but that’s probably true of the other teams as well. Having said that, you’re only judged on your lap time, and at the moment we’re just not as competitive as McLaren."

"We know their strengths. They are clearly doing well. When you are really on the cutting edge in Formula 1, you pull away from the rest, not the other way around. McLaren have clearly found something that the other teams have yet to discover," Russell continued (via JunaidSamodien_ on X).

The Mercedes driver also spoke about the changing regulations for the 2026 season, which might prove to be what is necessary to get all the teams back on an even playing field.

"One more year with these regulations and everyone would have found that speed. At the moment we just don’t know what that magic solution is. As a team we are just excited about the 2026 regulations – it will be a bit more conventional for all the teams." [via Formule1.nl]

Over the course of the first two Grand Prix weekends this season, George Russell has finished both races in third place, and with a Sprint finish of fourth, he has secured a total of 35 points in his battle for the championship.

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Mercedes team boss considers George Russell to be a top-three F1 driver

Toto Wolff and George Russell appear on stage during F1 75 Live at The O2 Arena on February 18, 2025 - Source: Getty

Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff ranked his driver to be one of the best on the grid at the moment. When asked about whether the story of George Russell was getting lost amid the departure of Lewis Hamilton and the addition of 18-year-old Kimi Antonelli to the team, Wolff agreed, but stressed that Russell should be considered to be a top racer in the sport.

“Little was said about George – I always said that is not right as he is one of the top drivers out there. If you want me to name three at the absolute top, he is one of those three, if not top two. And maybe on his way to top one.” [via F1]

The next race in the F1 calendar is the Japanese Grand Prix, taking place from April 4-6.