Russell says his confidence is returning as he targets more regular wins

Russell spoke about Mercedes, saying he now feels capable of fighting for victory every weekend.

Antonelli has 66 points. In his F1 career, Antonelli has had a crash.

Russell believes there is a significant gap in the championship, but notes that one third of the season remains and that plenty can still happen. He says he wants to take things race by race, feels more at one with the car and hopes the new upgrades, together with characteristic changes, will suit him better.

The driver says that earlier in the season he did not really feel he had a performance level strong enough to fight for victories. He says he no longer feels lost and that his confidence has returned and is growing.

He describes that progress as a conscious adjustment to his driving. In his view, what previously required thought over several races has become more intuitive and natural, allowing him to focus more on speed.

Russell believes Antonelli is facing a great deal of pressure. He adds that every driver fighting for the world championship experiences it, and considers that at this stage of the season, the title is Antonelli’s to lose; for his part, he wants to enjoy every race.

Antonelli described the previous weekend as the worst weekend of his season, while saying he had learned valuable lessons from it. He also praised Russell’s weekend in Baku, saying that he had the momentum.

In a lighter moment, Antonelli joked that his grandmother had returned to Italy after he booked her a flight.

On the upgrades, Russell calls them a good step forward. He explains that this impression also stems from the long wait since the previous improvements, calling it unusual to bring an upgrade only in May and then again in October.

He considers the upgrade significant in isolation, while presenting it as normal progress between May and October in a typical season. He hopes it will help Mercedes return to the front on types of circuits that have caused it more difficulties over the past six races.

Russell believes the car is efficient on low-drag circuits and cites Azerbaijan and Monza, where Mercedes was very competitive. He also notes that Red Bull reached the podium in Monza as well as in Azerbaijan.

He thinks Mercedes would have struggled on this type of track without the upgrade. He cites Zandvoort, where McLaren was very quick, and wants to assess the progress on circuits with long corners and very old tarmac.