Mercedes Faces Setback with Russell P7, Antonelli DNF in Imola

George Russell finishes P7 and Kimi Antonelli retires with throttle issues at the 2025 Emilia Romagna GP. Mercedes struggles with tyre overheating.

Mercedes left Imola with a sense of missed opportunity and pressing technical questions. The outcome — a seventh-place finish for George Russell and an early retirement for Kimi Antonelli — marked the team’s weakest result so far this season.

Russell made a confident start from P3 on used Medium tyres but immediately felt he couldn’t push. Rear axle overheating disrupted the car’s balance, and rather than fighting for the podium, the Briton had to shift to a damage-limitation strategy. A pit stop as early as lap 11 placed him at a disadvantage — committing to a two-stop approach while most opted for a single stop. On a narrow circuit like Imola, where overtaking is notoriously difficult, that decision became crucial.

Kimi Antonelli, starting from P13, impressively held off Lewis Hamilton in the opening stint. Starting on the Hard compound allowed him to showcase mature defensive driving. However, after switching to Mediums under the Virtual Safety Car, technical issues emerged. A loss of power caused by throttle failure intensified lap by lap, and on lap 46, the team retired the car — Antonelli’s first DNF in his rookie season.

The team acknowledged that rear tyre overheating was a severe limitation. Track temperatures reached 38°C, which only worsened the situation, eroding any chance of consistent race pace. Russell summed it up: “The car was painfully slow,” underlining that identifying the root causes will be the priority in the coming days. With a series of hot-weather races approaching, most imminently the Monaco Grand Prix, Mercedes must find quick solutions.

The performance of rivals underscored the team’s struggles. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen took a commanding victory, McLaren split the podium places, and Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton climbed from deep in the field — a further contrast to Mercedes’ muted weekend.

The team now faces a tight turnaround to prepare for Monaco — a circuit where precision and balance are everything, and small missteps can carry heavy consequences. Russell remains cautiously optimistic, pointing to Mercedes’ strength in qualifying this year. But to rejoin the fight at the front, the team will need more than fast one-lap pace — they must resolve the deeper systemic issues holding them back.

Source: mercedes-benz.com