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Jacques Villeneuve has claimed that George Russell has finally made a realisation about Kimi Antonelli.
Heading into the 2026 Formula 1 season, the overwhelming feeling was that Russell would be the firm favourite to win the world championship.
It was suggested that the Brit would get the better of Antonelli due to his talent and experience.
However, Antonelli has enjoyed a flying start, winning five races on the bounce before a technical issue forced him to retire in Barcelona.
Meanwhile, Russell retired in Canada due to a power unit problem, which is becoming a major issue for Mercedes.
As things stand, Russell remains third in the world championship after Lewis Hamilton won the Barcelona Grand Prix.
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Jacques Villeneuve pinpoints what George Russell has ‘realised’ about Kimi Antonelli
Speaking on the Sky Sports F1 Show, Villeneuve claimed that Russell thought beating Antonelli would be ‘a piece of cake’.
The 55-year-old, who won the F1 world title in 1997, stated that Russell has now realised Antonelli is not the teammate he thought he would be.
Villeneuve said: “If you look at the Mercedes team, the force to be reckoned with right now is Antonelli. It looks like Russell has plateaued and is feeling that kind of pressure from the young kid that’s come in.
“Last year, you know, he said he was very strong in his chats with Toto, saying, ‘Oh yeah, Antonelli would be a great teammate’, only because he thought, ‘Oh, easy one to beat’.
“And now, he’s realised, ‘Oops, maybe that was a mistake. That’s not the teammate I should have had because with this teammate, I won’t be world champion this year’.
“Whenever a driver says, ‘Oh, this teammate will be perfect’, it’s because he believes he will destroy him and he will be a piece of cake, easy, and that’s not what it turned out to be. So, not a very easy and good situation for Russell.”
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Jacques Villeneuve saw something ‘odd’ from Kimi Antonelli during the Barcelona Grand Prix
The former Williams driver pointed out the fact that Antonelli’s neck was being pushed to one side when he went through corners.
He added: “On the other hand, when you looked at Antonelli, he couldn’t hold his neck, which was incredible. I mean, it’s been a long time since we’ve seen a driver spend half the race with the neck hanging out. That was really odd.
“When you look at him, he looks fit; he doesn’t look like a skeleton. It looks like the muscle and the bulk are there. So, I’m not sure what was going on there; maybe he was just relaxing.”
The 2026 F1 season will continue next weekend with the Austrian Grand Prix, taking place around the Red Bull Ring.
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