Rosberg defends Mercedes strategy after Antonelli snatches Italian GP win from Russell

Kimi Antonelli claimed a remarkable Italian Grand Prix victory at Monza, recovering from 19th on the grid to overhaul race leader George Russell after a mid-race virtual safety car allowed him to pit for fresh medium tyres — a result that has since prompted questions over Mercedes’ strategic impartiality.

Russell, who had led the race, stayed out on hard tyres and was ultimately passed by his team-mate, a sequence of events that drew immediate scrutiny given Antonelli’s position at the top of the drivers’ championship. The win extended the Italian’s lead over Russell to 66 points.

2016 world champion Nico Rosberg moved quickly to shut down the favouritism narrative. Speaking after the race, Rosberg was asked directly whether Mercedes had acted in Antonelli’s interests because the Italian leads the standings.

“No, no, no, no, no,” Rosberg said. “Equal opportunity for both. It has to be the case. And that is the case. They’re racing for the championship.”

Rosberg, who drove for Mercedes between 2010 and 2016, outlined what he described as the team’s standard internal protocol: the driver leading the race receives strategic priority, regardless of championship position.

“It’s very clear internally in the team. George is leading the race. He gets the best strategy to get, in the fastest way possible, to the end of the race,” Rosberg said. “He gets the first choice. Doesn’t matter where Kimi is or what he is doing or whatever, he gets it. And that’s what Mercedes now needs to confirm.”

Rosberg acknowledged the difficulty of assessing the call from outside the garage, but maintained that keeping Russell out on the harder compound would have been the correct decision if it represented the quickest path to the finish.

“As I say, George has to get the best strategy because he’s leading. So he has to be given the best strategy, whatever it is,” he added. “And it has to have been that it’s the fastest way to get to the end by staying out on those hards because he only had a used medium set left. It’s hard to know from outside, but I hope that that was the case.”

The result leaves Antonelli with a commanding advantage in the championship, with Russell now 66 points adrift and the two Mercedes drivers set to continue racing without team orders.