Montoya warns Mercedes to accelerate upgrades as Ferrari closes the gap

Juan Pablo Montoya has issued a pointed warning to Mercedes, arguing the Brackley team must deliver upgrades more frequently if it wants to protect its commanding lead in the 2026 Formula 1 championship ahead of the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring on 28 June.

Speaking on F1 TV’s Weekend Warm-up show, the seven-time grand prix winner questioned whether Mercedes’ current strategy of spacing out large upgrade packages is sustainable given the incremental gains being made by rivals, particularly Ferrari.

“At some point, Mercedes has got to be looking at, ‘When do we start bringing more upgrades quicker?’” Montoya said. “I think they were comfortable thinking, ‘OK, we go to Canada, we bring an upgrade,’ and then the next one might be Silverstone or further on. They haven’t really said when the next one’s coming.”

Montoya also raised doubts about whether Mercedes’ approach would be enough to hold off Ferrari over the course of the season. “If they are just waiting for big packages and everybody else is bringing little things, it’s going to make their life harder,” he added. “The big question is, is that enough? Are they going to close that gap completely? And if in Barcelona everybody had gone for a three-stop, would Ferrari still have won the race? I’m not so sure.”

The Colombian’s comments come after a remarkable start to the season for Mercedes. George Russell opened the campaign with victory at the Australian Grand Prix and the Chinese sprint race, before 18-year-old Kimi Antonelli reeled off five consecutive grand prix wins in China, Japan, Miami, Canada and Monaco. Antonelli currently leads the drivers’ championship with 156 points and became the youngest driver to top the standings following his win in Japan.

Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton, who claimed his first grand prix victory in the famous red of the Scuderia at the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, sits second in the standings with 115 points. Russell is third on 106 points.

With Ferrari demonstrating race-winning pace in Spain and continuing to develop its car, Montoya’s warning underlines the pressure on Mercedes to maintain its early-season momentum rather than assume its current advantage will hold.