George Russell and Kimi Antonelli engaged in a tense duel. © APA / CLIVE MASON

Mercedes avoids crash drama in sprint

George Russell won the exciting Formula 1 sprint in Canada, prevailing in a thrilling duel with his Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli.

23 May 2026

From: apa/dpa

The defending champion from Great Britain triumphed in Saturday's short race in Montreal, narrowly beating world champion Lando Norris in his McLaren. Antonelli had to settle for third place after a tense battle for position with Russell. The Italian now leads Russell by 18 points in the overall World Championship standings.

Oscar Piastri finished fourth in the second McLaren, ahead of the Ferrari duo of Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton. Max Verstappen could only manage seventh place in his Red Bull. A few hours later, qualifying (10:00 PM) for Sunday's Grand Prix (10:00 PM) was scheduled.

Near-collision between the Silver Arrows

The "Silver Arrows," arriving at the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve with numerous upgrades, clashed on the track for the first time this season. Although Russell and Antonelli, unlike in recent races, got off to a very good start and easily pulled away from the competition, the teammates nearly collided on lap 6 of 23.

George Russell won the sprint. © APA / RUDY CAREZZEVOLI

Antonelli attempted an overtaking maneuver, but the 19-year-old had to swerve onto the grass to avoid the hard-but-fair defending of Russell. Shortly afterwards, Antonelli went off the track again during another overtaking attempt – followed by angry radio messages.
“That was very rude,” complained Antonelli, who had lost a position to Norris during his overzealous excursion. “There has to be a penalty for that,” demanded the teenager, looking at his teammate.

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff had to intervene to calm things down. "Kimi, concentrate on driving and not on complaining on the radio," the Viennese driver said. Subsequently, Russell, Norris, and Antonelli completed their laps close together. Russell remained flawless at the front and cruised to his second sprint victory of the season, while behind him, Antonelli's overtaking attempt against Norris failed.