Mercedes has confirmed that George Russell and Kimi Antonelli will continue as the teamโs Formula 1 driver line-up into 2026.
โGeorge and Kimi have proved a strong pairing and we’re excited to continue our journey together,โ Team Principal Toto Wolff said in a statement.
โConfirming our driver line-up was always just a matter of when, not if,โ Wolff added. โWe wanted to take our time, handle the negotiations properly and make sure everyone, on all sides, was happy. I’m pleased we have done that. Our focus is now on the final six races of the year, as we fight for second in the Constructors’, and onwards to 2026 and a new era in F1.โ
George Russell โproudโ to stay with Mercedes in 2026 F1 season
Multiple Grand Prix winner Russell, 27, will enter his eighth season in Formula 1 and his fifth with Mercedes. Antonelli, 19, will continue into his second year in the sport.
Both drivers are graduates of the Mercedes junior system, joining the programme in 2017 and 2019 respectively.
Russell, who previously won the GP3 and Formula 2 titles before making his F1 debut with Williams, has secured five race victories since joining Mercedes. โI am really proud to be continuing our journey together,โ he said. โNext year will mark my 10th since I signed with Mercedes back in 2017. It has been such a long and successful partnership with the team so far and I canโt wait to see what lies ahead, particularly as we embark on one of the largest regulation changes in the sportโs history next year.
โWe are all incredibly focused on making that a success and, for me personally, building on what has been my strongest season in F1 to date.โ
Kimi Antonelli โsuper excitedโ for Formula 1 2026 season
Antonelli, who previously claimed multiple Formula 4 championships, the Formula Regional title and race wins in Formula 2, made his Formula 1 debut at the start of this year.
He has since become the third youngest podium finisher in Formula 1 history. โIโm super excited to be continuing with the team,โ he said. โIโve learnt so much in my first season in F1, both in the good moments and the more challenging ones. Those have all made me stronger, not only as a driver but as a team-mate too.
โI want to say thank you to Toto and everyone at Brackley and Brixworth for their continued support and faith in me. Our focus now is to finish this year strongly and secure second in the Constructors’ Championship, before we then turn our full attention to 2026. Thereโs plenty for us still to achieve in these final six races and we will be giving it our all.โ
