David Croft pinpoints when ‘alarm bells’ will start ringing for George Russell in F1 title battle

David Croft believes the “alarm bells” will start ringing if George Russell fails to beat Mercedes team-mate Andrea Kimi Antonelli for the fourth Formula 1 race in a row.

Russell was outperformed by his teenage team-mate at the Miami Grand Prix as Antonelli continued his recent surge of momentum in their developing title battle by converting a third consecutive pole position into victory.

The win sees surprise championship leader Antonelli stretch his lead over Russell, who began the year as the clear title favourite, at the top of the drivers’ standings by 20 points after the opening four rounds.

Russell finished 43 seconds behind Antonelli and Croft reckons the upcoming Canadian Grand Prix, where the 28-year-old Briton dominated last season, will be a pivotal weekend in the title race.

“I would want Montreal to come next weekend, if I was George Russell,” Croft told the Sky Sports F1 podcast.

“I wouldn’t want to be waiting a couple of weeks, dwelling on what happened in Miami and thinking about how big Canada is now becoming. He won there last year, it’s a track he’s really strong at. And Kimi finished on the podium, so it was a very good weekend for Mercedes last year.

“But if George doesn’t beat Kimi - with Mercedes’ upgrades that are coming- on a track that he regards as one of his best, and Toto Wolff says is one of his best, then the alarm bells really start to ring.

“There’s still a long way to go in the season, but this is a massive weekend for George Russell. He needs that commanding performance. But Kimi’s on a roll.”

Croft thinks Antonelli has an additional weapon in his arsenal in the shape of his race engineer Peter ‘Bono’ Bonnington, who previously engineered Lewis Hamilton to six of his seven world championships with Mercedes.

“George is not just racing against Kimi, he’s racing against what is a very good new partnership,” Croft added.

“Bono was coaching Kimi lap-by-lap. The reassurance that comes from the pit wall, the guidance that comes from the pit wall. He’s got an excellent comfort blanket, safety net, coach and guru, whatever you want to call it, in his corner.

“Bono has been there with championship-winning seasons and how to take the pressure of it. He is the perfect man for Kimi Antonelli. It’s not just George against Kimi, it’s George against a partnership, and that’s going to take some cracking.”