George Russell gave a ‘trouble ahead’ warning if things go wrong at the Canadian GP.
Mercedes driver George Russell might be in a tough spot if things don’t go his way at the Canadian Grand Prix, says Jolyon Palmer.
Russell started the season strong by winning in Australia, but he hasn’t taken first place in the last three races. Meanwhile, his Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli has won three in a row and is now 20 points ahead in the Drivers’ Championship.
With the fifth race coming up at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, pressure is building for Russell to step up. He finished fourth in the last two races and also came fourth in the Miami sprint.
Talking to SPORTbible through Lottoland, F1 expert Palmer thinks Russell will be in “trouble town” if he loses to Antonelli again in Montreal.
“This feels like a big moment in the year, Montreal,” Palmer said. “George came into the season almost expected to win the title. Mercedes had an amazing car. George has worked hard for years and finally has the best car. He outperformed Lewis before, but Mercedes didn’t have the best car.
“Now, this feels like George’s championship to win. But Kimi has been doing great too – especially winning in Miami. George has had some struggles lately. But George can hold onto the fact that Kimi was really strong last year in Miami and Japan, where he also won in 2026. George had some bad luck in China, so that’s a bit different.
“In Montreal, George has been strong before. He won last year even when Mercedes didn’t have a great car and got pole position the year before. Now that Mercedes has a great car, I expect George to do well this weekend. It’s a sprint weekend, so he’ll need to focus fast.
“If Kimi beats George again this weekend, then George will be in trouble and will have to find a way back strong because there’s still a long season ahead.
“But if George can bounce back in Canada, the championship could be back in his hands and under his control.”