George Russell has been told he must “destroy” Kimi Antonelli at this weekend’s Japanese GP to reassert his control over the F1 title race.

Antonelli claimed his first career victory last time out in the Chinese GP to make it 1-1 against Russell, who won the season-opener in Australia, with a Mercedes driver almost certain to be crowned world champion, such is the team’s advantage over the other 10 squads.

Team leader Russell came into the 2026 season as the bookie’s favourite to take the title, with Antonelli in his second campaign in the series, but former F1 driver and two-time Indy 500 winner Juan Pablo Montoya has told the Briton that he must squash out any momentum Antonelli would have received following his breakthrough win. 

“I would say it is that George has more to lose than it being Kimi’s to win,” Montoya exclusively told RacingNews365. 

“I think everything lined up for Kimi to get the win between the safety car and George’s problems in qualifying, but he executed, and he did what we needed to do, and that will give him some confidence.

“I think it is important for George to make sure he goes to the next race and destroys Kimi, because when you are in F1, it is about managing the situation with your team-mate and about controlling what is going on in your team-mate’s head. 

“Managing that, and managing that well, can make a big difference.”