George Russell desperately needs to end the first half of the season with a strong weekend at the Hungarian Grand Prix. The pre-season title favourite endured a nightmare time in Belgium, where he was again out-qualified by Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli before being punted out of the race on the first lap after contact with Lewis Hamilton's Ferrari.
Antonelli then zoomed to a dominant victory to move 50 points clear of Russell, who has pointed his finger at his team and a perceived lack of performance from his power unit. Power will be less of an issue at the tight, twisty Hungaroring, meaning Russell will have no excuses if he is beaten by his young stablemate again.
Red Bull receiving driver calls
Red Bull have been flooded with interest from drivers keen on joining the team amid mounting uncertainty surrounding Max Verstappen's future. The four-time world champion, who has been linked with Mercedes and McLaren, holds the key to the driver market.
A clause within his contract would permit him to depart the team at the conclusion of this season. Despite his ongoing dissatisfaction with Red Bull's performance and the sport's present rules set, he appears more inclined to switch teams for 2028, as things currently stand.
With Verstappen weighing up his future, Red Bull must plan for life without F1's finest driver. And according to team principal Laurent Mekies, numerous drivers have made contact regarding the prospective opening.
Mekies told Sky Sports F1: "Look, it is working in both directions. It is completely natural that Max gets a call from everyone, because he is the best driver in the world. And equally, if you are a top team, you are going to get calls from many of these good drivers around as well. So that's natural. Is it a distraction for us? Not really."
"Our full focus is on getting that car as fast as it can [be] and then you will keep your best driver in the world. And we also see the massive growth of Isack [Hadjar] alongside Max, and that for us is the ideal pairing and we try to make sure we can keep that pairing."
Antonelli steps aside for FP1
The championship leader is among several drivers who will be substituted for the opening practice session in Hungary. F1 teams are required to field rookies in at least two sessions across both cars throughout a season.
Antonelli will relinquish his car to Mercedes reserve driver Frederik Vesti. The Danish racer has already experienced time in Antonelli's machine this season following his appearance in FP1 at the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix.
As such, the Italian will not be required to surrender his car for any additional sessions this year. By contrast, Russell has yet to be substituted for any practice sessions, meaning he must vacate his seat on two separate occasions once the season restarts following the summer break.
McLaren's Oscar Piastri will also miss the opening practice session in Hungary, with Leonardo Fornaroli stepping in. Meanwhile, Paul Aron (Alpine), Ryo Hirakawa (Haas) and Colton Herta (Cadillac) will take over from Franco Colapinto, Oliver Bearman and Valtteri Bottas, respectively, in FP1.
