Two big barriers to a Verstappen-Russell swap at Mercedes singled out

Speaking on the Red Flags podcast, the former Haas team principal believes a move that would bring Verstappen to Mercedes would be far from straightforward, given the salary gap between the two drivers and the prospect of letting go of a potential world champion already in the team at the end of the season.

Speaking to La Gazzetta dello Sport, former Formula 1 driver Riccardo Patrese believes Russell now has far less reason to feel comfortable and may be starting to look over his shoulder.

According to him, the Briton’s performance over the weekend has raised a number of questions for the Mercedes driver, particularly after witnessing the level delivered by Antonelli. While Russell was well aware of the Italian’s talent, Patrese suggested he may not have expected such a composed and complete performance so early.

The young Mercedes driver impressed with a flawless race on Sunday, keeping the situation firmly under control, managing his tyres with maturity and leaving the impression that he still had extra pace in reserve even if Russell had managed to close the gap. For that reason, Patrese believes Russell is likely to feel at least a little uneasy after what he saw on track.