Russell Anxious?
Russell 51, Antonelli 47, Leclerc 34, Hamilton 33: this is the Drivers’ standings after the first two weekends of 2026, which also recorded the Sprint in China. George Russell is not at full points because Antonelli won in Shanghai, who is paying for the gap accumulated precisely in Saturday’s race where, in addition to starting poorly, he took a ten-second penalty for overdoing it under braking at Turn 6, ramming Isack Hadjar.
The Ferraris for now have had to fight for the third step of the podium, and also regarding the comparison between Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton, the score in the GPs is 1 to 1, with Leclerc ahead of Hamilton because he finished ahead of him in the Sprint.
In two weeks in Japan, the first triple-header of races will conclude, then the cancellation of the GPs in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia will mean that the World Championship will resume only in May in Miami, where Ferrari will bring many updates as anticipated by team principal Frederic Vasseur.
Read more The rumor: Ferrari, filming day at Monza to test the upgrades for Miami
In the Chinese GP, Ferrari proved to be more effective than Mercedes at the start, and even when it came to bringing the hard tires up to temperature, the SF-26s were quicker to do so than the W17s. The final gap still saw the reds at least 25 seconds behind the winner Antonelli, but Russell is not at ease regarding the near future. The Mercedes driver fears that the current technical advantage could quickly vanish, also because the advantage, as also highlighted by Lewis Hamilton, is not 360°: “Ferrari is definitely very fast – Russell said in the press conference – they are faster than us in the corners, slower than us on the straight. As it stands, we have the advantage, but we cannot take it for granted because obviously we know that some things will change in a couple of months“. What is Russell referring to? Teams and drivers know that in the summer, the technical checks on the compression ratio will change; additionally, the ADUO could also come into play, which could help Ferrari if the engine difference with Mercedes continues to be so evident.
Read more Two Cadillacs at the finish line in China, Bottas: “Great result for the team”
