Mercedes upgrade gap widens as Antonelli struggles
"The new car seems to be a little more tricky"
Mercedes’ troubled upgrade has come under even more pressure in Singapore, with Kimi Antonelli around six tenths slower than George Russell in Sprint qualifying.
Russell, running the older specification, was only a tenth off Max Verstappen’s Sprint pole, while championship leader Antonelli continued with most of the newer package after abandoning the new front wing following practice.
"I still have a lot to understand about this package," Antonelli said.
"The car is very difficult, very unpredictable, and it’s very hard to put together a good lap. It’s a shame because I came here with high hopes, but it’s proving very difficult."
"I don’t know where we can find seven tenths of a second."
Toto Wolff admitted the same pattern seen at Sepang has followed Mercedes to Singapore.
"The new car seems to be a little more tricky to drive," he confirmed.
"Not saying it’s necessarily slower, because there will be goodness in it, but maybe we haven’t just found a way of putting it all together and tuning it."
"The older car is a bit more stable, grippy."
Wolff said understanding the package is especially important because the development direction also feeds into 2027.
"We’ve put a few months of upgrades into the car, clearly pointing in a direction that we think is advantageous," said the team boss.
"Maybe we just need to calibrate it a little bit in order to find the right way forward for 2027."
F1 legend Gerhard Berger told Krone newspaper that Mercedes’ problems should still be kept in perspective.
"That’s complaining at a very high level," he laughed.
"They’ll analyse the upgrades carefully and continue working hard. Mercedes is winning races, they’re well on course for the world championship with Kimi Antonelli."
Wolff also used the Singapore press conference to hit back at conspiracy theories that Mercedes has favoured Antonelli over Russell.
"They’re brainless, whoever thinks that," said the Austrian.
"I find it hilarious. I’m Satan, I’ve heard."
He added that those spreading the claims should watch "Teletubbies or some Mickey Mouse" instead of Formula 1.