Nico Rosberg teases reason for George Russell Mercedes F1 contract ‘fight’

Nico Rosberg has suggested that the ongoing contract stand-off between Mercedes and George Russell is related to salary.

Russell, who has been one of the standout performers this season, is expected to be retained alongside rookie Kimi Antonelli for 2026 but Mercedes are yet to officially confirm either driver.

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has insisted that the team will continue with Russell and Antonelli as their drivers next year, but the 27-year-old Briton’s contract is still not finalised.

The length of time it has taken to agree a new deal has raised questions over Russell’s long-term future with the team, particularly as Mercedes had been exploring a move for Max Verstappen before the four-time world champion reaffirmed his commitment to Red Bull.

And 2016 world champion Rosberg claims Russell is now “fighting Toto with his own medicine” as he seeks better terms.

Is salary and sponsorship the key to delays?

“It’s horrible to negotiate with Toto and he just disappears off planet earth when you’re trying to get better terms. He just disappears and just doesn’t even let you talk with him. It’s horrible. I suffered a lot,” Rosberg told The F1 Show.

“But now, it’s George doing the kind of reverse to Toto. It’s like he’s fighting Toto with his own medicine. George apparently is just not happy with a couple of terms in the contract. George is a Mercedes junior, so certainly he won’t be on a Lando Norris-level salary, by far and away not, and George feels Lando is equal to him.

“George, by any means, can drive at Lando’s level and can win races and championships if he has the car. So of course, he will feel a little bit of that’s not quite fair, that I’m so far away from Lando’s salary.

“And then also, there’s things like sponsor days. Nowadays, these teams have so many sponsors, paying so much money, and the only way for a team to give back to a sponsor is of course logo space, which is limited. And they want driver time. They want their customers to be able to meet George Russell, and so they’re using the drivers so much.

“I’m not allowed to say it’s painful for us, because everybody watching will be like, ‘shut up, you know, you earn so much money, all you have to do is go to a sponsor event, shake some hands, take some pictures, and I’m saying it’s painful’, but it is really painful!

“So George also there, will try and reduce.. The number can go up to like 60 days or something, 60 in 356 days. That’s a lot of days. And some of those 60 days are split into half days. So it can actually be like 80 days. That’s a lot, like when all we want to do is go to the Nordschleife and go racing in GT3 cars.”

Sky Sports F1 commentator David Croft added: “Part of George’s thinking is also, ‘I am a different driver. I’m a stronger driver and better driver than I was the last time I signed a contract, and I’m leading this team, especially now Lewis [Hamilton] has left, and I deserve recompense for that.’”