George Russell backs Red Bull as the team to beat in Formula 1
NXTbets Pro | Published On: October 12, 2026
Red Bull surge
Russell sees Red Bull as the standard in Formula 1 after Max Verstappen put together a strong run that included victories in the Singapore Grand Prix, the Singapore sprint race on Saturday and the Bahrain Grand Prix the previous weekend. That stretch gave Red Bull the kind of momentum that changes the conversation up front. The team’s Baku upgrade made the RB22 quicker and more predictable, and Verstappen said the car has become more drivable and predictable. Those gains matter because they show up across different types of tracks, not just on one layout or in one set of conditions. Russell pointed to that spread when he said Red Bull is now “the team to beat.” He also said Red Bull has been impressive over the last three races on very different tracks. For Russell, the message is clear. Red Bull has found a better balance, Verstappen has carried it to results and the rest of the field has reason to measure itself against that benchmark. The combination of pace and control is the part that stands out most. A fast car that is also predictable lets a driver push harder, adjust faster and trust the package more when the track changes. That is the edge Red Bull has shown over this recent run, and it is why Russell put them at the front of the line.
Mercedes upgrade
Mercedes has its own upgrade path to sort out after introducing a package for the W17 in Malaysia, but the team has not yet turned that update into the kind of gain it expected. Russell said Mercedes needs to understand how to get more performance from the package, and Kimi Antonelli gave the clearest picture of why the work remains unfinished. Antonelli said Mercedes is still trying to unlock the upgrade’s performance and described the car’s operating window as very narrow and highly sensitive to driving style and setup. That means the margin for error is thin. Small changes can move the car away from its best range, and that makes it harder to line up the upgrade with what the drivers need. Antonelli also said Mercedes may be missing some of the gains shown in simulations because it has not yet extracted the package’s full potential. That point matters because it suggests the speed is in the car, but the team has not reached it on track. The upgrade is not being judged as a simple yes or no. Instead, Mercedes is still working through the details that decide whether the package becomes a real step forward or stays only a step on paper. Russell and Antonelli both framed the task the same way. Mercedes must understand the upgrade before it can trust it, and trust is what turns fresh parts into lap time.
Austin setup
The next chance comes at the United States Grand Prix in Austin, where both Mercedes drivers believe the team should have a better shot at finding the right setup and making the upgrade work as intended. That matters because the latest Mercedes package has already shown that the details around setup and driving style carry real weight. Austin gives the team another clean test of those variables and another chance to compare what the car can do with what the simulation suggested it might do. If Mercedes can find a wider operating window there, the W17 upgrade can start to look like a step forward instead of a work in progress. The event also sits against a bigger backdrop of where the top teams appear to be headed. Toto Wolff praised Red Bull’s development and said next year would be a “full-on fight” between Mercedes and Red Bull. That comment fits the current picture. Red Bull has the recent results and the more settled car. Mercedes has an upgrade that still needs a better read. Austin will not settle the rivalry, but it offers another checkpoint for Mercedes and another reminder of how much ground Red Bull has covered with its own development. For now, Verstappen and Red Bull hold the upper hand. Mercedes knows where it wants to get, and Austin is the next place to try to get there.
