# Mercedes boss praises Antonelli’s masterclass while admitting they failed George Russell

> Mercedes boss celebrates Antonelli’s title win but admits team failed George Russell’s race.
- Title: Mercedes boss praises Antonelli’s masterclass while admitting…
- Summary: Mercedes boss celebrates Antonelli’s title win but admits team failed George Russell’s race. Mercedes engineering director Andrew Shovlin praised Andrea Kimi…
- Keywords: mercedes, andrea kimi antonelli, george russell, mercedes boss, formula 1, mexico city grand prix, battery failure, championship, Motorsport
- Source: Motorsport — https://motorsport.com/f1/news/mercedes-boss-praises-antonellis-masterclass-while-admitting-they-failed-george-russell/10871236
- Author: Rahaan Mazumder
- Published: 2026-11-03T22:49:22+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: mercedes, andrea kimi antonelli, george russell, f1, mercedes boss, formula 1, mexico city grand prix, battery failure, championship, sports, cars
## Mercedes celebrates Antonelli’s title win
Andrew Shovlin praised Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s first world championship after Mexico City Grand Prix.

> Congratulations to Kimi on his first world championship
## Antonelli’s strategic tyre mastery
Antonelli executed a massive opening stint, nursing soft tyres past 40 laps to create strategic offset.

> He did a really good job managing the Soft tyre in the first stint and was able to run it beyond 40 laps
## Antonelli secures podium after restart
Antonelli dropped from fourth to snatch podium finish behind Verstappen and Hamilton after restart.

> He restarted P4 but made a very good move on Leclerc to get back into the podium positions
## George Russell’s battery failure
Russell suffered battery deployment failure before first braking zone, losing positions and causing penalty.

> George had a difficult afternoon through no fault of his own
## Russell’s race impact
Russell’s contact with Hadjar led to 10-second penalty and sixth-place finish despite challenges.

> The deployment issue on the run to Turn 1 cost him several positions
## Mercedes team response
Shovlin admitted team responsibility for Russell’s race failure and focused on Constructors’ Championship.

> It’s frustrating because we didn’t give him the start to the race that he needed
## Key takeaway

Mercedes engineering director Andrew Shovlin praised Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s championship win but acknowledged a battery failure cost George Russell the race.