Mercedes driver George Russell is looking ahead to the Spa weekend with concern—he says the new 2026 cars in the rain are a ride into the absolute unknown
Mercedes driver George Russell has warned that Formula 1 drivers will face a completely unpredictable challenge when the first rain race of the season finally takes place. He openly admits that it is practically impossible to properly prepare for driving the 2026 cars in wet conditions.
Russell spoke after a dramatic—but dry—British Grand Prix at Silverstone. There, despite a slow puncture, he managed to salvage second place by capitalizing on a late safety car period.
As the World Championship now heads to the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps—a circuit known for its changeable conditions—the prospect of a rainy weekend looms. For the British driver and his rivals, a wet session in the current cars means venturing into the absolute unknown.
The Big Unknown
“You can’t really plan for it because you just don’t know what you’re up against,” Russell explained on the Nu Silver Arrows Radio Show.
“You don’t know what kind of beast is lurking beneath you. There’s already been some discussion that the tires might not be as good as they’ve been in past years. So as a driver, you’ll probably take it a bit more cautiously on the out-lap and during the first lap.”
“You probably won’t go full throttle through Eau Rouge on your first push lap—your first lap in the rain,” he clarified.
Preparation for nothing?
Bradley Lord, Mercedes’ deputy team principal, noted that no two laps are the same in the rain. Russell agreed: “No. So you can’t really prepare for it. You can do as much preparation as you want, but once you’re out there, you just have to be flexible and able to adapt.”
Russell heads to the Belgian Grand Prix in second place in the World Championship, trailing leader Kimi Antonelli by 25 points. The race weekend at Spa-Francorchamps takes place from July 17 to 19.