Mercedes Fined $5,589 After George Russell Leaves Mexican GP Without Speaking to Press

Amid the joy and celebrations of Kimi Antonelli becoming the 2026 F1 world champion, the Mercedes camp has been hit with a fine worth €5,000 ($5,589), owing to their other driver, George Russell. The British driver failed to serve his post-race media duties, and his team was penalized for the same, after excusing him without the FIA’s approval.

Sharing the explanatory statement, the FIA claimed, “The stewards heard from the team representative that the driver had left the circuit without attending the post-race media commitments. Noting that the stewards can proceed to make a determination in the case of a non-attendance at a hearing, a penalty of €5,000 is imposed on the competitor.”

Apart from the top three finishers of a race who end up taking part in the FIA Press Conference, all other drivers are mandated to visit the media pen. There, they have to address the broadcasters as well as the written media.

Mercedes signaled to the media that Russell would not be attending the media pen after the race, admitting that they were the ones who excused the driver from his mandatory duties. However, the FIA had played no part in the dispensation, meaning the team was in direct breach of the regulations.

Mercedes Explains the Absence of George Russell

With Russell’s absence becoming a major talking point in the post-race proceedings, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff faced the cameras and provided an explanation for the same. Stating that he had spoken to the No. 63 driver on the FIA scales, Wolff revealed that the driver was “distraught about the situation.”

Having known Russell for a long time, Wolff continued that the British driver was going through a tough period, but he also played an important role in bringing Antonelli to the team. As such, it was still “a great show of sportsmanship” from him to go and see Antonelli after the race.

Speaking further, Wolff detailed that it was a catastrophic moment for any racing driver and that the race in Mexico City was perhaps the perfect summary of the entire season for Russell. This was a race that the Briton should have won, given the pace was there.

However, the energy delivery was not on point at the start of the race and, per Wolff, it is the team that let Russell down. Given everything that happened in Mexico City, the Mercedes team principal extended his support to the No. 63 driver, as he understands that Russell is in a situation that is very difficult to cope with.

A Far From Ideal Outing for George Russell

Starting the race from P2, Russell had his sights set on a fourth race win of the season, with just Lewis Hamilton starting in front of him. However, as soon as the lights went green, a nightmare scenario began to unfold for the 28-year-old, who had energy deployment issues from the start.

Dropping down several places before reaching Turn 1, Russell knew it was going to be a hard day at the office. His problems got worse when he made contact with the Red Bull of Isack Hadjar at Turn 6.

Following an investigation, Russell was hit with a 10-second penalty, which he served during his pit stop. Having served the penalty, Russell crossed the finish line in P6, as his teammate was crowned the world champion.

Meanwhile, adding insult to injury, the British driver now sits in P4 (as opposed to P2 before the Mexican GP) in the drivers’ standings, with both Hamilton and Max Verstappen going past him.

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