Russell perplexed by struggles having arrived in Monaco playing mind games

Image source, Getty Images Image caption, George Russell won the season-opening race in Australia but has been beaten by Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli in every grand prix since By Andrew Benson F1 Correspondent in Monaco Published 33 minutes ago George Russell arrived in Monaco with the intention of playing a few mind games with Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli in an attempt to get his championship back on track. Russell claimed that the title was now Antonelli's "to lose" after the 19-year-old Italian had extended his advantage in their private fight to 43 points following the Canadian Grand Prix, where the Briton retired from the lead. By the end of qualifying, though, Russell admitted it was he who was "scratching my head" as he faced the reality that he was sixth on the grid, and Antonelli on pole - with 0.394 seconds between them. Afterwards, Russell said that he was "a bit bamboozled". And for the first time this season he acknowledged what has been becoming increasingly clear in recent races - that he was struggling compared with Antonelli. He said: "I don't really know what's going on." Russell pointed out that in the first two races of the season in Australia and China "every lap I did was good" but that "now nothing's clicking". The 28-year-old was on pole at the last race in Canada but said: "The last three races have just been nowhere. Even Canada, I was nowhere until the last lap of Q3 of both sessions. So, I don't have an answer for that." He added: "Until I can make some adjustments, it's going to continue like this." Antonelli's 'magic lap' pips Verstappen to Monaco pole Published 2 hours ago Will 2026's 'yo-yo racing' mean overtaking in Monaco? Published 3 days ago Russell said he believed the problem lay in their respective driving styles, and its impact on whether the tyres were at their ideal temperature for a qualifying lap. "There's clearly a difference in driving style between the two of us, which has been there last year as well, but played into my hands very well last year," Russell said. "And it clearly is playing into his hands perfectly well this year, but it still doesn't answer why I was so good at the start of the year and so poor now. So, we need to look at why that is. It's clear in the data. "The difference is how we're driving has such an impact on the tyres. He's just getting the tyres in a nicer window than me, a nicer balance over the course of a lap, and the pace is just coming easier for him. I don't know why that is. "I've been driving in this manner my whole career, and now, for whatever reason, it's not working with this car. "Last year's car, Kimi was trying to drive in my way, and it was also not working for him. "It's no excuse, it's just a reality, and I need to either work with the team to adjust my driving to compensate these new tyres, these new cars, or I need to find a different set-up that works for me." The result of qualifying was especially dispiriting for Russell, who was on pole at th