Antonelli takes fourth in Singapore qualifying as Russell struggles
Russell recorded the sixth-fastest time in Q3 but faces an engine penalty that is set to put him at the back of the grid.
Mercedes drivers reported contrasting fortunes after qualifying in Singapore: Kimi Antonelli was fourth-fastest and said problems with his car’s upgrade had been identified, while George Russell described a deterioration in performance following his sprint crash.
Ahead of Antonelli on the grid will be Red Bull driver Max Verstappen, followed by Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton. Antonelli leads the championship by 89 points over Russell and is pursuing the record as the youngest world champion, aged 20.
The upgrade made its debut at Sepang, where Antonelli took second place. He said Mercedes had improved its understanding of the package, but the car’s operating range remained narrow and setup adjustments were still needed. Russell had switched back to an earlier configuration that helped him secure victory in Baku.
Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff said the changes appeared to be working for Antonelli after he and his engineers addressed the problems. However, Wolff wanted race data before judging whether the package could reduce tyre degradation, saying assessment across successive race weekends had proved difficult.
Russell used qualifying to assess his car’s condition after spinning out while leading the sprint. Despite strong pace before that incident, he said the car felt different and his performance had worsened. Wolff characterised the spin as a rare mistake.
