Mercedes locks in 2026: Russell stays, Antonelli gets the nod — and the message is loud
Mercedes has ended the guessing game around its post-2025 driver plans, confirming George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli for the first year of the new engine and aero regs. It’s a vote of continuity as F1 steers into another rule reset, and a statement that Brackley is backing its own project rather than chasing a big-name shuffle.
Russell’s case is obvious. He’s turned consistency into currency at Mercedes, punctuated by that fifth career win in Singapore. He’s been the grown-up in the room since 2022 and, crucially, a reliable yardstick for where the car really is on Sundays.
Antonelli, meanwhile, has been the boom-and-bust rookie everyone expected: raw pace that makes engineers grin, and the odd bruise that comes with learning at 300 kph. Sprint pole in Miami, then a maiden podium in Canada — encouraging flashes that suggest Mercedes is right to keep him in the system as the 2026 rulebook lands. The team’s read is clear: better to have the next star in-house when the chessboard gets reset.
Horner-to-Ferrari chatter cools
As for the other perpetual headline, talk of Christian Horner making a shock return via Maranello continues to wilt under scrutiny. The story did the rounds again this week, but those close to the situation insist a Ferrari move is unlikely. PlanetF1.com previously reported Ferrari had sounded Horner out before his exit from Red Bull in July; that interest hasn’t suddenly vanished, but the shape of any comeback seems key.
Horner, for his part, is thought to be prioritising a slice of equity or an ownership-style arrangement if he returns to F1 at all. That narrows the field. Ferrari doesn’t hand out shares. And the political weather in Maranello tends to favor continuity once the season’s rolling. Never say never in this sport, but pencil, don’t ink.
Williams draws a hard line for 2026
James Vowles has never been shy about setting standards, and he’s drawn another one. The Williams boss says he’d bench Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon if things ever devolved into the kind of teammate civil war that costs points — “crashing into each other more than they’re finishing a race,” as he put it.
It fits the tenor at Grove since Vowles took over: culture first, chaos later (or preferably not at all). The turnaround is real — Williams is tracking toward fifth in the 2025 constructors’ standings, which would mark its best finish since 2017 — and the Sainz/Albon pairing is capable of more than the sum of its parts if kept on the rails. The message is less a threat than a reminder: the project comes before the egos.
A serious allegation involving Schumacher’s household
Swiss prosecutors have alleged that an Australian racing driver raped one of Michael Schumacher’s nurses at the family home in Gland in November 2019. The individual, said to be a friend of Mick Schumacher, is accused of sexually assaulting a nurse in her thirties — part of the medical team caring for Michael since his 2013 skiing accident — while she was unconscious. The case is moving through the legal process. As ever with matters of this nature, the allegations are contested and the courts will determine the outcome. The identities of the accused and victim remain confidential at this stage.
Andretti’s wish list starts with a Ferrari star
On the 2026 expansion front, Mario Andretti hasn’t lost his salesman’s touch. The 1978 world champion and Cadillac F1 board member says he’d sign Charles Leclerc “right away” if he could. That’s both a compliment to Leclerc and a candid admission that a brand-new team will need “a couple of years” before it can realistically court that caliber of driver. Leclerc has been linked with a move away from Ferrari amid a fractious 2025, but the bigger takeaway is Andretti’s direction of travel: aim high, build credibility, and be ready when opportunity knocks.
What it all adds up to
– Mercedes has circled the wagons around a future they can mold. Russell’s stability plus Antonelli’s upside is a sensible 2026 blueprint.
– The Horner-to-Ferrari rumor may have oxygen, but not much fire. If he returns, expect leverage, not a lateral move.
– Williams is protecting its progress with a clear line for its headline drivers. That’s how you keep a project from eating itself.
– Andretti is talking like a team intent on being more than a logo on a grid slot.
The sport’s next big pivot is 2026, but the pieces are moving now. And if there’s a theme today, it’s this: control what you can control — drivers, culture, and the long game — and let everyone else chase the noise.
