George Russell told to issue Mercedes ultimatum as F1 2026 contract remains unsigned | F1 | Sport
Former Haas team principal Guenther Steiner believes that George Russell should leverage the barren driver market to push for a multi-year contract extension with Mercedes. The Brit remains out of contract at the end of the season, despite winning his second Grand Prix of the year in Singapore.
Russell’s contract limbo has been a constant topic of discussion this season. The 27-year-old’s seat looked to be in danger at the height of Max Verstappen’s links to Mercedes, but after the Dutchman put an end to speculation in Hungary, the coast was clear for the Brit to pen a new deal.
And yet, months later, Russell remains without a contract for 2026, and the same goes for team-mate Kimi Antonelli. Both drivers are expected to sign new deals before the end of the year, but negotiations continue to rumble on.
“Mercedes is even in a tougher place,” Steiner told the Red Flags Podcast. “Who would they put in there if he doesn’t sign a one-year contract? And that is his leverage because Mercedes would be, you know, who they put in there?
“There is nobody available because Mercedes needs to fight for World Championships. It’s not like a midfield team, where you take whatever the best you can get for the money you’ve got. Mercedes, if they are participating in F1, they want to win the World Championship.
“They’re not here to participate. They are here to win. So who else is there than George? I think that is his leverage that Mercedes has no other option. That’s for next year, and that is his play.
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“’I want more than next year’ because in ’27 if, for example, just hypothetical Max decides Red Bull isn’t good enough for me. I want to go to Mercedes. Obviously, then George would have the chance to go to Red Bull.
“But at that stage, Red Bull has got all the leverage over George that if you want our seat, and we don’t know how good or how bad the Red Bull will be anyway in ’27, but they have got the leverage, where else would you go? So I think in the moment, the biggest leverage for George is that Mercedes has nobody else to go in the car next year.”
Meanwhile, on the track, Mercedes are locked into a fierce battle with Ferrari for second place in the Constructors’ Championship. Russell’s win in Singapore means that, with six rounds of the 2025 campaign remaining, Toto Wolff’s squad have a 27-point advantage over the Italian outfit.
