Nico Rosberg believes that sooner or later there will be a direct showdown between Kimi Antonelli and George Russell – What advice does he have for the teenager?
Will 2026 see an internal Mercedes battle for the Formula 1 World Championship title? Currently, Kimi Antonelli leads the World Championship ahead of his teammate George Russell, and the Silver Arrows have claimed all four Grand Prix victories so far this year.
Nico Rosberg knows from personal experience what such a situation feels like. From 2014 to 2016, he battled his then-Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton for the world championship title for three consecutive years. Hamilton initially came out on top twice, but Rosberg won in 2016.
Over the course of those three years, there were several incidents of contact and even accidents between the two. It’s a scenario Rosberg can envision at Mercedes in 2026 as well. “Of course, there will be a duel between the two of them,” he predicts in an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport.
“We’ve already seen how close they are to each other, and it’s inevitable that it will happen, especially when the chance for a title is on the line,” explains the 40-year-old, speaking from personal experience.
Regarding Antonelli, who once drove for Rosberg’s team in karting, the 2016 world champion says that he is “a phenomenon” and “one of the greatest talents” he “has ever seen in karting, along with Max Verstappen.”
Rosberg: Never Doubted Antonelli’s Qualities
“When he went through difficult moments last year and some people doubted his abilities, I kept saying, ‘Calm down, you have to give him time; this kid will make it.’ And that’s exactly what happened,” Rosberg emphasizes.
The 19-year-old has recently secured three Grand Prix victories in a row. Rosberg explains: “He’s very much in the spotlight: Everyone in Italy has fallen in love with him, he’s already become a star in Formula 1, and that will be hard to handle.”
The teenager must therefore “be able to block everything out, not listen to or pay attention to what’s being said about him around him, focus on the season race by race, and wait and see how it goes,” says Rosberg.
“He’s only 19 years old, and no one has ever led the championship at such a young age,” recalls the longtime Mercedes driver, who, aside from that, has one simple piece of advice for Antonelli: “Keep driving like this!”
Rosberg emphasizes that there will certainly be “difficult moments” in 2026, especially since it is not yet certain “that it will be a duel between the Mercedes drivers throughout the entire championship.” However, it cannot be ruled out that this is exactly how it will play out.