The British driver acknowledges that his rivals were faster in sprint qualifying. Mercedes lost the advantage they had enjoyed in the first three races, Norris took pole and Antonelli snuck into second.
The incontestable dominance that Mercedes had exhibited in the first three races of the 2026 season seems to have been left behind, the Miami Grand Prix, the first event after the April break, has shown a very different reality for the Silver Arrows: McLaren and Ferrari have made a leap in quality that has surprised even their own rivals.
George Russell, who had won in Australia and accompanied his teammate Kimi Antonelli in the triumphs of China and Japan, was the most affected by this change in trend, the Briton could not hide his disappointment after sprint qualifying, where Lando Norris took pole position and Antonelli snuck into second place, Oscar Piastri, third, completed a great weekend for the papaya team.
"I was surprised that the McLarens and Ferraris overtook me, we knew our rivals would close in, but today they were faster than us. It was a very bad qualifying session," Russell confessed at the end of the session.
The problem, according to the driver himself, was not singular: "I had many problems, probably also due to the conditions, we overheated the tires, at the end, we also lacked the right balance with the car. I couldn't push as hard as I would have liked," Russell detailed.
The most striking thing was that the Briton could not even beat Max Verstappen, whose Red Bull RB22 remains far from the top but showed signs of improvement. Russell finished behind the Dutchman, an unthinkable result in the first rounds of the championship.
Toto Wolff had already anticipated during the week that Mercedes' big advantage would probably not be maintained in Miami. The German team principal acknowledged that, while the engine remains competitive, the margin has been reduced. He also warned that McLaren and Ferrari had worked intensively during the April break and that their aerodynamic upgrades could make the difference.
Reality has proven him right. While in Australia, China and Japan the W17 had been unreachable for the rest, in Miami the grid has tightened. Ferrari, with Charles Leclerc setting the best time in free practice, and McLaren, with outstanding qualifying pace, have shown that the break has done them good.
Russell, however, trusts that it is just a bad day: "We'll see what tomorrow can bring," he stated. The Briton will have the opportunity to redeem himself in the sprint race and, above all, in the main race on Sunday. But the message has already been sent: Mercedes is no longer the unbeatable car of the first weeks. The fight for the championship has opened up.