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Mercedes

Should Mercedes back Kimi Antonelli as rival teams close the gap?

With McLaren ramping up its F1 form, is it now time for Mercedes to intervene and back one of its drivers for a title charge?

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Kimi Antonelli's lead in the 2026 drivers' championship now stands at a healthy 59 points over team-mate George Russell after the Dutch Grand Prix.

The 19-year-old is sitting on 242 points to Russell's 183. but with McLaren and Lando Norris surging, having now won back-to-back races in Hungary and at Zandvoort, the pressure on Mercedes is mounting.

Team orders were deployed at Zandvoort, with Russell told to let Antonelli through for second place late in the race. 

However, the situation was complicated by the fact Antonelli was on much fresher soft tyres after a Virtual Safety Car pitstop, having been ahead of Russell before that stop. 

Toto Wolff insisted the call was straightforward: "It plays no role who is ahead in the championship or not, it's just about protecting the best possible positions."

With Norris now just 83 points behind Antonelli and the gap shrinking, should Mercedes formally throw their weight behind Antonelli's title bid? 

Cast your vote in the poll below.

Also interesting:

Join RacingNews365's Nick Golding and Samuel Coop as they look back on last weekend's Dutch Grand Prix! The duo discuss Max Verstappen's massive crash, if Lando Norris' title defence dream is alive and team orders starting to be used.


Rather watch the podcast? Then click here!

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