George Russell biggest F1 fight is with team-mate Kimi Antonelli – Lando Norris

Lando Norris warned George Russell he is facing a challenge he has never dealt with before as he fights team-mate Kimi Antonelli for the world championship.

Russell was the pre-season championship favourite as Mercedes delivered the strongest car for the sport’s new regulations, and an opening win in Melbourne only strengthened that case.

But Antonelli, 19, has turned the tables by winning the next three races and arrives in Canada this weekend with a 20-point advantage.

Norris found himself in a very similar situation last season, slipping behind McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri early in the season before ultimately clinching a maiden championship.

The 26-year-old believes Russell has the mettle for the title scrap – one which Norris and McLaren would very much like to muscle their way into – but says having a dangerous challenger across the garage will make life much harder.

“I think any situation that he’s ever dealt with is different to fighting for a world championship,” Norris said.

“Forget everything that’s ever happened, I think as soon as you’re fighting for a world championship, and then you also have a strong team-mate, that’s a very different situation.

“The last few years, I’ve had a very strong team-mate that as soon as I wasn’t on my A game, I was way off. That always makes your life a lot, lot tougher.

“Certainly (George) puts up a good fight. I think he’s shown that already when he tried to fight Max (Verstappen) off the track.

Firstly, congrats to Kimi on an impressive win! Miami is a place I love but a track that has always been challenging for me. I’m looking forward to Montreal and the upcoming European races. Thanks for all the continued support