Mercedes have their best chance since 2021 to return to championship-winning glory, having emerged as the team to beat under the new regulations, but reliability woes have transformed them into their own biggest enemy. Despite leading the standings, Kimi Antonelli has lost out on valuable points due to unfortunate retirements, as has his frustrated team mate George Russell. The races leading up to the summer break saw their competitors close up too, so will the Silver Arrows be able to stay out in front? Let\u2019s dive into their half term report\u2026<\/p>\n
Best finish<\/p>\n
Antonelli \u2013 1st in China, Japan, Miami, Canada, Monaco and Belgium; Russell \u2013 1st in Australia and Austria<\/p>\n
Mercedes<\/a> got off to a flying start in 2026 with the new-look W17 as Russell<\/a> and Antonelli<\/a> secured a dominant 1-2 finish in Australia, with their closest rivals at Ferrari<\/a> crossing the line over 15s behind the Briton.<\/p>\n While Russell\u2019s misfortunes began to ramp up after the season opener, his teenage counterpart went on a magnificent run of five victories and became the youngest-ever championship leader<\/a> in the process, building a commanding lead.<\/p>\n But his success couldn\u2019t last forever and he suffered his first DNF at the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix whilst running in second place. It wasn\u2019t until Round 10 in Belgium that he stood on the top step again, allowing Russell to capitalise on his downturn in performance and take his second win of the year in Austria.<\/p>\n Qualifying head-to-head<\/p>\n Russell 4-7 Antonelli<\/p>\n Antonelli currently holds a 59-point lead<\/a> over Russell, but he also has the edge when it comes to Qualifying performances. The Italian claimed his first career pole position in China and has matched the result a further five times, with Great Britain representing the only instance he has failed to convert it into a win.<\/p>\n Although Russell isn\u2019t far behind, having qualified on pole on four occasions, some weekends have seen him suffer a sizeable deficit of several tenths to Antonelli, such as in Miami and Belgium.<\/p>\n Race head-to-head<\/p>\n Russell 4-7 Antonelli<\/p>\n Antonelli has the upper hand when it comes to their performances on race day too. His tally of six triumphs outshines Russell\u2019s two wins, but their overall consistency has been impressive \u2013 every round so far has seen at least one Mercedes driver finish on the podium.<\/p>\n The Briton outperformed Antonelli through victories in Australia and Austria and was able to make the most of unlucky weekends for his team mate in Barcelona-Catalunya and Great Britain (both of which saw him finish the Grands Prix with zero points) to wind up in the top three.<\/p>\n Best moment<\/p>\n It may not have been entirely expected, but Antonelli\u2019s victory streak was a throwback to Mercedes\u2019 dominance of seasons gone by, marking a highly anticipated turnaround for the team that never quite got to grips with the recent ground effect era.<\/p>\n And on a personal note, it was a decisive response to the youngster\u2019s critics after his mistake-ridden rookie campaign. Winning at a wide range of circuits, including the notorious challenge of Monaco, demonstrated that Toto Wolff\u2019s faith in him was never unfounded.<\/p>\n Antonelli\u2019s triumph in the Principality may indeed have been his greatest yet \u2013 after crossing the line three laps down in the 2025 edition of the race, he looked like a different driver this time around as he evaded a late attempt by Max Verstappen<\/a> to qualify on pole position.<\/p>\n From there, he confidently led from the front and survived two Safety Cars and a red flag to hold off Ferrari\u2019s Lewis Hamilton<\/a>, showing a level of maturity that proved he\u2019s more than ready to pursue his maiden title.<\/p>\n Worst moment<\/p>\n On the other side of the garage, Russell has spent more time berating his car and, at times, himself rather than celebrating results. From his “strange” lack of pace<\/a> to believing it\u2019s \u201cimpossible\u201d to take the fight to Antonelli<\/a>, he\u2019s had a rollercoaster first half of the season.<\/p>\n As we\u2019ve mentioned, the Italian has endured some bad luck too, but the unwanted honour of Mercedes\u2019 worst moment has to go to Russell\u2019s retirement from the Canadian Grand Prix.<\/p>\n Three weeks after he missed out on a podium in Miami, a track he openly dislikes, he arrived in Canada refreshed and went on to qualify on pole for the Sprint. That soon turned into a much-needed win and was followed up with another pole position, this time for the main event.<\/p>\n Russell was hounded by Antonelli at lights out, with the pair getting stuck into a tense contest for the lead, but he just about held on before his power unit suddenly failed<\/a> 30 laps in.<\/p>\n It not only added another incident to Mercedes\u2019 growing list of reliability concerns, but also left the Briton in shock as he watched a race win slip out of his grasp, leaving him with an even bigger mountain to climb in the championship battle.<\/p>\n Going forward<\/p>\n Mercedes are obviously in an enviable position thanks to their 79-point lead over Ferrari in the teams\u2019 standings<\/a>, but if last season proved anything, it\u2019s that advantages can disappear faster than you think.<\/p>\n The players have switched from McLaren<\/a> and Red Bull<\/a> to the Silver Arrows and Ferrari \u2013 more specifically, Antonelli, Russell and Hamilton, with the 41-year-old enjoying a slim nine-point margin over his former team mate.<\/p>\n While keeping Ferrari at bay over the remaining rounds won\u2019t be the easiest task, especially as the Italian team have introduced many effective upgrades, it seems like the Brackley-based outfit already have enough of an overall edge to control both championships \u2013 as long as they fix their reliability issues.<\/p>\n