Hamilton predicts grid penalties for Russell and Antonelli as Mercedes reliability woes mount

Lewis Hamilton has predicted that Mercedes drivers George Russell and Kimi Antonelli will incur grid penalties for exceeding power unit component usage before the 2026 Formula 1 season is out, pointing to the team’s early-season reliability problems as the root cause.

The seven-time world champion, now at Ferrari, made the remarks while praising his new team’s consistency — a quality he suggested Mercedes is currently lacking. Both Russell and Antonelli have already suffered one electronics-triggered retirement each: Russell dropped out of the Canadian Grand Prix and Antonelli retired from the Barcelona GP.

“You’re seeing engines in general have had more issues this year than they normally would have,” Hamilton said. “I don’t know what the situation is on the battery side of things for George and for Kimi, but at some point there must be a penalty, I would imagine, in the sense that we only have two battery cells or something like that.”

Under 2026 F1 regulations, each driver is permitted a maximum of four internal combustion engines, turbochargers, and exhausts across the season, alongside three motor generator unit-kinetic (MGU-K) units, energy stores, and control electronics. Exceeding any of those allocations triggers an automatic grid penalty.

FIA power unit usage data heading into the British Grand Prix shows Mercedes and Ferrari have consumed the same number of electrical components so far this season. However, that figure does not reveal how many of those components remain usable — what teams refer to as being “in the pool” — and how many have been written off entirely, meaning the true picture of Mercedes’ remaining allocation is less clear-cut than the headline numbers suggest.

Hamilton was effusive about Ferrari’s own reliability standards, crediting the entire organisation for the improvement. “Everyone back in the factory has worked so hard to bring this consistency, and that’s really what I think ultimately is going to make the difference this year,” he said.

Despite his concerns about Mercedes, Hamilton acknowledged that managing resources carefully will be critical for every team. “It’s going to be key for us just holding onto this, maximising the points, executing to the best of our ability, even when it’s the case that we can’t win,” he added.