Mercedes Drivers Russell and Antonelli Spark Internal 'War' at Canadian GP

The Formula One season's championship battle is heating up, with an internal conflict brewing within the Mercedes camp between teammates George Russell and Kimi Antonelli. The two drivers engaged in several aggressive duels throughout the sprint and main races at the Canadian Grand Prix, leading to a special meeting with team boss Toto Wolff.

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They told us, trust them to race because that's why they were hired by Mercedes and they are confident they can do it professionally.

The situation reportedly escalated after Antonelli expressed emotional radio messages during a wheel-to-wheel sprint race battle with Russell in Montreal. However, Mercedes deputy principal Bradley Lord revealed that both drivers had actually requested the freedom to race each other without excessive team interference. "They told us, trust them to race because that's why they were hired by Mercedes and they are confident they can do it professionally," Lord stated.

Russell and Antonelli once again clashed intensely during the main race, with multiple overtakes for the lead before Russell encountered a power unit issue. Mercedes engineering director Andrew Shovlin admitted there were several alarming moments where the teammates nearly collided. "We want to give them the freedom to race, but there were some situations that were too close and could have resulted in one hitting the back of the team's own car," Shovlin said.

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We want to give them the freedom to race but there were some situations that were too close and could have resulted in one hitting the back of the team's own car.

"They want to be allowed to race, but at the same time, they understand that they need to race fairly and not cause both cars to fail to finish the race," he added. The team aims to balance the drivers' competitive spirit with the necessity of securing points and avoiding costly incidents.

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They want to be allowed to race but at the same time, they understand that they need to race fairly and not cause both cars to fail to finish the race.