George Russell's Formula 1 title dream remains very much alive despite a luckless first half of the campaign, according to former F1 racer Juan Pablo Montoya. The pre-season favourite won comfortably on the opening day but has managed just one more Grand Prix victory since.
Russell, 28, has been plagued by engine problems beyond his control while Mercedes starlet Kimi Antonelli has outshone his more experienced team-mate. The Brit is third in the championship and 59 points adrift of Antonelli, who turns 20 later this month, as a result. He is more than two full Grand Prix victories' worth of points behind, but Montoya insists Russell can still grab this best-ever opportunity to become world champion.
Montoya's Confidence
"Look how fast things can change," the seven-time F1 race-winner told Express Sport, via Betpack. "One bad start, one bad issue and he can make inroads. It is not all over."
Referring to his long string of luckless problems, Russell said he has "never had a season like this in my whole career". He also feels this new generation of F1 cars does not suit his style and that has put him on the back foot compared to Antonelli.
That has shown at times even when Russell's car has been working as intended, when he has still struggled to match his team-mate's pace. Montoya, though, insists that old adage 'you make your own luck' does not apply here.
Bad Luck, Not Fault
He added: "When the car breaks down, how is that George’s fault? It's bad luck. When the car breaks down and you are the one having all the issues, it just doesn't help his state of mind. His mindset has changed a lot and he's getting the right mindset now. So that is good for him."
The two Mercedes drivers are split by Lewis Hamilton, 50 points behind Antonelli and nine clear of Russell. Charles Leclerc is not far behind in the other Ferrari while Lando Norris' title defence has finally kicked into gear with his first Grand Prix win of the season in Hungary.
Engine Penalty Looming
Mercedes remain the favourite but engine reliability problems have stopped them building a more significant points gap. And there is more hurt to come as the lost power unit parts means at least one grid penalty for each of their drivers looks unavoidable in the second half of the year.
Antonelli is already on his final set of engine parts for the year, with each driver allowed up to four components, while Russell is on his third. Boss Toto Wolff hopes Mercedes can avoid having to take a grid drop, though his deputy Bradley Lord is not so optimistic.
He said: "I think, looking at how many we've used in the first half of the season, it's almost inevitable that at some point there will be penalties to take. It's realistically going to be hard to get to the end of the season on the existing hardware that we've got. We've got half a season to do."
Taking a fifth engine for the season comes with an automatic 10-place grid drop. And Italian Antonelli may have to take his at his home race, given Monza is one of the more overtaking-friendly circuits remaining. Wolff said: "It is very special for Kimi, but on paper it looks like a good place to take an engine penalty. Maybe it will take the pressure off, to start from the back."
