Mercedes drivers receive impassioned plea as timid McLaren duel criticised

Jolyon Palmer has delivered an impassioned plea to the Mercedes F1 drivers not to repeat the "timid" championship fight served up by McLaren in 2025.

With the W17 looking the dominant machine in 2026, it appears clear that Kimi Antonelli and George Russell will engage in battle for the drivers' title in the first intra-Mercedes fight since Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg in 2016.

After three races, Antonelli has two grand prix wins to Russell's one, with the Briton also scooping the Chinese GP Sprint victory, as the Italian holds a nine-point lead through F1's April break. 

Looking ahead to the expected battle between the two, Palmer recounted the "sedate" fight for most of 2025 between Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, where the two drivers largely followed team orders, including at Monza, where Piastri swapped back positions with Norris after a slow pit-stop.

A major flashpoint came in Singapore at the start when Norris barged Piastri out of the way at Turn 2 to grab third place, leaving the Australian furious, something Palmer would like to see from Antonelli and Russell. 

"I'd like to see a bit more fight in the Mercedes duo as the season goes on," Palmer observed to the F1 Nation podcast. 

"I think McLaren last year is a benchmark; it was just so sedate, they were complying with team orders all the way.

"Even when there were repercussions for what happened in Singapore, and Lando took it on the chin, it was the only moment where I thought there was a proper bit of fight from Norris against Piastri.

"Apart from that, both drivers were just listening to the team, and playing it nice, which is great and good for McLaren, they won, happy days.

"The partnership is good just from a sporting sense if you've only got one of the two of them that can win, but I am here for rivalries."