Eddie Irvine tells Toto Wolff why Mercedes can’t use team orders on Kimi Antonelli or George Russell

Follow us on Google Discover

Eddie Irvine thinks Toto Wolff cannot use team orders amid the 2026 F1 title fight, as Mercedes drivers Andrea Kimi Antonelli and George Russell are too evenly matched.

The Silver Arrows have recorded a perfect start to the 2026 season, with Russell winning the Australian Grand Prix and Sprint in Shanghai while Antonelli won the Chinese Grand Prix and the Japanese Grand Prix. Russell and Antonelli even secured each victory from pole position.

It took Russell failing to finish on the podium at Suzuka for Mercedes not to claim a one-two finish in a Grand Prix this year, too. The Briton finished P4 as Antonelli won the Japanese GP, having been disadvantaged by the safety car period that promoted the Italian into the lead.

Russell had just pitted moments before Haas driver Oliver Bearman crashed in the Japanese GP avoiding Franco Colapinto of Alpine at Spoon. Without the stoppage, Russell would have expected to continue his battle with McLaren’s Oscar Piastri over the victory in round three.

Change Riccardo Patrese’s mind… Explain why George Russell is good enough to be an F1 world champion 👇

Comment

Like or Comment

Have your say Sign-in now for free

Eddie Irvine thinks Kimi Antonelli and George Russell are too evenly matched for team orders

Antonelli now leads the F1 drivers’ standings thanks to his two Grand Prix wins, as well, with Russell nine points adrift at the April break. It is currently looking like a direct fight between the Silver Arrows stars over the title, barring any of their rivals making major progress soon.

READ MORE: All you need to know about Mercedes F1 CEO and team principal Toto Wolff

Mercedes thus now face having to weigh up using team orders to ensure that Antonelli and Russell’s title fight remains a fair battle. But Irvine believes team principal Wolff has to learn from Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg’s fights and stay out of Antonelli and Russell’s battle.

Irvine told Gazzetta dello Sport: “Kimi is a real title contender, but it’s still too early to make any predictions about how the season will end.”

“I’m 100% sure of it,” he added, concerning the likelihood of Antonelli and Russell clashing. “The stakes are too high, and the drivers have similar performances. Therefore, Toto Wolff can’t intervene with team orders.

“He experienced very tense situations when Lewis Hamilton battled with Nico Rosberg, and then with Max Verstappen. On the latter occasion, there was a bad accident at Silverstone.”

Mercedes currently face a similar situation in 2026 with Antonelli and Russell to what they experienced with Hamilton and Rosberg between 2014 and 2016. The Briton and German were the only drivers in those title fights owing to Mercedes’ car being in a different league.

The Brackley natives left their rivals in their wake at the very start of F1’s turbo-hybrid era in 2014, and it took until 2021 when Red Bull gave Verstappen a championship-winning car for anyone to rival Mercedes. Now, Mercedes’ latest engine for 2026 has put them back on top.

Many expected Mercedes to be the team to beat at the start of the 2026 F1 regulation era, given how dominant they were when F1 first introduced turbo-hybrids. F1 has removed the MGU-H and increased the role of the MGU-K for a near 50/50 power split with the ICE now.