George Russell says his “smooth” driving style not being suited to the Miami International Autodrome has been the reason for his significant deficit to his Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli at the Florida event.
Antonelli, who leads Russell at the top of the Drivers’ Championship by seven points, took a superb pole position for Sunday’s Miami Grand Prix, beating his team-mate by almost four tenths of a second as the Brit was left to settle for fifth on the grid.
The result represented a continuation of the pair’s form throughout the weekend, with the 19-year-old Italian having taken second in Sprint Qualifying on Friday as Russell came sixth.
Antonelli overcame a poor start to finish fourth on track in the Sprint itself, four seconds clear of Russell, but was demoted below his team-mate – and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen – to sixth after receiving a five-second penalty for breaching track limits on four occasions.
“I just struggle on these low-grip circuits, so here [in Miami], Zandvoort, Brazil,” Russell told Sky Sports F1 after qualifying.
“It was the same last year. It’s something I want to work on but there are three tracks out of the 24 that are outliers, and Miami is definitely top of that list.
“I’m quite a smooth, precise driver. That’s always been my style. On these tracks you have to be happy with the car just sliding.
“I like the car on the edge, but this is like you have a set of 200-lap old tyres on your car and you go around and it’s just sliding, oversteer and understeer. That’s the same for everyone.
“It’s so hot, the tyre pressures are high, the grip is really low, so it doesn’t feel that pleasant, whereas tracks like Saudi the grip is super high.”
After Russell won the season-opening Australian Grand Prix from pole, Antonelli hit back with poles and victories in China and Japan to secure a nine-point championship lead before the season paused for five weeks as races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia were cancelled.
Highlights of the Sprint race from the 2026 Miami Grand Prix.
Much was made during the break of the fact that Russell, a clear pre-season favourite for the drivers’ title, was trailing his far less experienced team-mate after three rounds.
While Russell did actually reduce his deficit in the Miami Sprint, that was only down to Antonelli making an unforced error, when he had a clear pace advantage over his team-mate.
Russell insisted that he will not be thinking about “damage limitation” in Sunday’s race, for which the start time has been moved three hours earlier to 6pm UK time amid the forecast of thunderstorms.
“I’m not thinking damage limitation,” Russell said. “I’m just going out there to maximise the result.
“That was the same in the Sprint. Tomorrow is a different day with weather on the radar, and we saw again with the race starts, everything can change in the first few hundred metres.”
‘George is going to be irritated’
Sky Sports F1’s Naomi Schiff said that Russell will be “irritated” at having finished behind Antonelli for a third successive qualifying session.
Reacting to Russell’s comments, Schiff said: “The worst thing you see is your team-mate making more of a gap, going out every session and being quicker than him.
“And regardless of whether it’s a driving style thing or not, if he ends up in a head-to-head battle with his team-mate, he’s got to be better than him every time he goes out there. It might swing around again, but obviously George is going to be irritated by that.
Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli secures a third consecutive Grand Prix pole position with a dominant lap in Miami, bouncing back from a difficult Sprint. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen improves to second on the grid but remains over a tenth adrift.
“George is a great driver and he’s not going to love the situation, but it also is a long season ahead. He’s got consistency on his side. He’s obviously not got the pace this weekend, but he’s always there, he’s always going to score the points.”
Sky Sports F1 pundit and former world champion Jenson Button added: “When you’re a precision driver, it’s really difficult when you find yourself sliding into a corner and you can’t pick out the apex as you want, or the exit.
“And it’s also worse here because there are other teams that are competitive. He’s got the McLarens in front, he’s got the Ferraris and Max in a Red Bull.”
Antonelli: I was happy with my lap
Having admitted to making too many mistakes during the Sprint, Antonelli said he was “happy” with the lap that secured him pole.
The crucial effort was actually Antonelli’s first of two flying lap attempts in Q3, the second of which was blown as made a mistake at the first corner.
Kimi Antonelli says he is delighted to secure pole position in Miami after battling difficult weather and wind throughout the weekend.
Antonelli told Sky Sports F1: “It hasn’t been easy this weekend – very hot, track very slippery, and also this track is not easy to put all the sectors together.
“I think I was happy with my lap. Maybe there was a little bit more on the table, but we don’t know because I didn’t even do one corner.
“I’m happy with the performance, especially this weekend where with the others bringing big upgrades, it has been a bit more difficult for us, but the team did a tremendous job.”
Sky Sports F1’s Miami GP schedule
The Miami Grand Prix is a unique experience, watch our favourite moments from the last few years!
Sunday May 3
2.25pm: F2 Feature Race
4pm: Miami GP build-up: Grand Prix Sunday
6pm: THE MIAMI GRAND PRIX*
8pm: Miami GP reaction: Chequered Flag*
9pm: Ted’s Notebook*
*Also on Sky Sports Main Event
Formula 1 is in Miami as the 2026 season resumes, watch live on Sky Sports F1 with Sunday’s Grand Prix at 6pm. Stream Sky Sports with NOW – no contract, cancel anytime
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