George Russell backed to overcome 'doubts and psychological difficulties'

Former F1 driver Thierry Boutsen has backed George Russell to rediscover his form after a turbulent first half to the season, insisting the Mercedes man "will be back, for sure."

Russell sits third in the drivers' championship on 160 points after 11 rounds, 59 behind team-mate Kimi Antonelli, who leads the standings.

It is a deficit that has been compounded by a mixture of reliability woes, costly incidents, and a frustrating inability to consistently extract the best from the W17.

The 28-year-old started the year brightly, winning the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, but a difficult stretch through the middle of the campaign has seen him slip back in the title fight.

A mechanical retirement while leading in Canada proved a pivotal blow, while a first-lap collision with Lewis Hamilton at Spa-Francorchamps and an anti-stall issue off the line in Hungary further dented his points tally more recently.

By contrast, Antonelli has been the sensation of the season. The 19-year-old Italian won five of the first six grands prix and holds six victories in total, establishing himself as the championship's dominant force.

His aggressive, instinctive approach has proven a natural fit for the 2026 Mercedes, while Russell has at times appeared to struggle with the car's characteristics, admitting earlier in the season that he was "bamboozled" by his drop in pace.

Boutsen, who won three grands prix with Williams between 1989 and 1990 across an 11-season career spanning five teams, believes Russell's difficulties are part of a natural cycle that all drivers experience.

"It's normal also that you have cycles like this in your career where everything goes very well, and then all of a sudden, you lose a little bit of confidence, the car has a problem, then you lose confidence more, and you go through a cycle where everything goes bad," he told the official Formula 1 website.

"George will be back, for sure. Whenever he gets the opportunity, he will be back."

The Belgian also noted that Antonelli's current purple patch will not last forever, suggesting the teenager will inevitably face his own difficult spell.

"Drivers go through these moments of doubts and psychological difficulties, and Kimi will have the same," Boutsen added.

"Maybe not this year, the year after, maybe two years, we will see."