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Mercedes were right to tell George Russell to move aside for Kimi Antonelli at the Dutch GP as McLaren and Ferrari put the pressure on the Silver Arrows in the Formula 1 title race. The incident occurred on Lap 56 or 72 shortly after a late virtual safety car under which the Italian pitted for soft tyres whilst Russell remained out, finding himself promoted from third to second. However, he was on used hard tyres and that left him vulnerable when the VSC ended and the racing resumed as he aimed to fend off Antonelli, Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc behind, the trio running soft tyres. He could not pit due to the fact that he did not have the window behind and would have lost position to the Ferrari cars if the Scuderia opted to leave either Hamilton or Leclerc out instead. So, by the time Lando Norris led the field away back to racing he had gained track position but lost any tyre advantage as he aimed to secure a top three finish in Zandvoort. At the same time, the charge was on for Mercedes to try to catch Norris before the chequered flag, but in order to do so they needed to move the 20-year-old Antonelli into second. More from the Dutch GP Catch up with Total Motorsport’s latest Dutch GP coverage, including Lando Norris’ dramatic victory at Zandvoort, the full race classification, Max Verstappen’s Lap 1 crash, and the latest on Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari future. So as the championship leader in the 2026 F1 season closed in with the faster tyres, the call came on Lap 65 for Russell to allow his teammate through – initially hesitant and asking questions, he eventually did so into Turn 1. But by this point, Norris was seemingly out of reach with a healthy gap in the lead with laps running out and Antonelli could not close in, whilst his colleague was placed under immense pressure by Hamilton with Leclerc close behind. The Ferrari looked set to overtake on Lap 71 before another VSC was deployed, however, the 41-year-old then had a chance into Turn 1 but couldn’t find a way through as Russell finished third. Mercedes’ gamble had worked as they exited the Netherlands with the second and third-placed trophies and 33 points in the bag, but on another day without a mechanical failure for Esteban Ocon it could have gone wrong. However, even if Hamilton and possibly Leclerc had found their way through, the Silver Arrows were not wrong to issue the order with a win on the cards and championship implications to think about. So here is why Mercedes were right to tell Russell to move aside for Antonelli at Dutch GP: Why Mercedes were right to tell Russell to move aside for Antonelli at Dutch GP The obvious reason is that the strategy worked and Mercedes secured their 2-3 on the day, whilst using Antonelli to back up Hamilton to protect Russell may not have ensured the result and would have left no chance of winning. On another day, the Silver Arrows could have ordered their championship leader through but told him to allow the 28-year-old to remain within Overtake Mode for the extra boost of power – but once again this have left no chance of winning. So the pit wall judged the Ferrari pace quite accurately on the day, meaning that ultimately neither of the drivers can have any complaints. The proof is in the proverbial pudding on this occasion. However, the other reason they were right to issue the order is that Antonelli is competing for the world title whilst at this point, Russell is now realistically out of the picture. With just two race wins in the season and a run of four podiums in 10 races since his form dipped after the Chinese GP, he is struggling for consistent big points, and he is not passing the eye test either – the Brit’s performances are just not convincing. Given that the picture in the championship is no longer an exclusive party between the Mercedes cars, Russell’s job only becomes harder as he now has to beat Hamilton, Leclerc, Norris and Oscar Piastri – as well as Max Verstappen on occasion. Beating his teammate no longer guarantees him a gain of seven points, it could be as small as two points and that is simply not a big enough haul to overturn a 59-point lead with just 11 rounds to go. Of course, a DNF can change that in a moment and reduce the gap to 34 points in a moment, but using the word can is discussing hypotheticals. There is no guarantee of a DNF for Antonelli, and no guarantee that it won’t happen to Russell either. Perhaps most centrally to this debate is that Mercedes are no longer the dominant car and Antonelli himself only has one victory in the past six races as Mclaren and Ferrari emerge on the scene. Winning is no longer guaranteed so what do Mercedes do? It is simple: they must protect the driver currently leading the standings as Norris and Hamilton threaten to close in. That is why they were right to issue the team orders to Russell as Antonelli gained three more points in the fight against Norris, ensuring the gap is 83 points heading into the Italian GP. It seems like a mountain to climb for Norris if he hopes to take the title away, but it also seemed that way for Verstappen in the 2025 F1 season when he left the Dutch GP some 104 points behind Piastri. By Abu Dhabi, however, Red Bull’s man finished 11 points ahead of the Australian. Although he did lose the title to Norris by two points, the Dutchman’s performance perfectly showed just how quickly things can change. Therefore, as harsh as it is to Russell, Mercedes must start thinking about the end of the year rather than the short-term because the pack is closing in and they are doing so very quickly. McLaren and Ferrari only have to find a little bit more lap time and then there would then be no guarantee of even securing a podium. If Antonelli starts finishing fourth as Norris wins then his cushion can be eliminated in seven races. And that doesn’t even deal with the fact that Hamilton is currently only 59 points back. Imagine if he starts winning instead…