Russell podium and Antonelli near miss lift Mercedes above Ferrari

Written by Kavi Khandelwal

George Russell secured a second-place podium and his teammate, Kimi Antonelli scored a fourth place result for the team at the 2025 Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Despite these results, the two drivers shared different emotions. This team result facilitated Mercedes to overtake Ferrari in the Constructors' Championship at P2.

George Russell is currently fourth in the Drivers' Championship | Credit: Formula One

Russell, who finished second, believed his result was a reward for a clean and composed drive in a race where many rivals faltered.

He stated: "It was a really strong race to be honest. I think mainly just down to staying out of trouble, you know. I don't think we did anything spectacular. It was just a lot of people made a lot of mistakes this weekend between qualifying and the race."

The Briton was quick to temper expectations for the upcoming races, attributing the team's strong performance to the cold conditions which favour their car.

"No, I mean temperatures are cold here," Russell explained. "It was more of a case of keeping temperature in the tyre, which is where we excel. You know, when you look at Vegas last year or Canada this year. So going to Singapore I think will be a bit of a different story."

Kimi Antonelli finished two seconds behind Carlos Sainz | Credit: Formula One

On the other side of the garage, Antonelli expressed satisfaction with his fourth-place finish but admitted to a sense of disappointment after coming so close to a trophy.

The young Italian said: "It was a much better race compared to Monza. And, you know, it's a bit disappointing still because I was really hoping for the podium and, you know, it was so close."

Despite missing out on personal silverware, Antonelli was focused on the significant points advantage gained over their rivals, Ferrari, in the World Constructors' Championship.

"Still a decent result, especially for the team," he commented. "You know, we gained a lot of points on Ferrari. So that's definitely positive."

In contrast to his teammate's cautious outlook, Antonelli hopes the team can build on this performance.

He concluded: "Hopefully, you know, we can carry this momentum into Singapore next week."