Russell: Sprint pole a good reminder that 'I've still got it'

George Russell: Mercedes driver says Dutch GP Sprint pole a good reminder of his talent as Kimi Antonelli bemoans car damage George Russell edged out Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc for Sprint pole in Zandvoort; championship leader Kimi Antonelli fifth after damaging car; watch the Sprint on Saturday at 11am (build-up from 10am) with Qualifying for the Dutch GP at 3pm, live on Sky Sports F1 Friday 21 August 2026 17:43, UK George Russell admitted it was "good to remind myself I've still got it" after returning to form by taking Sprint pole for the Dutch Grand Prix. Having begun the season as the clear favourite for the drivers' title, Russell has endured a tumultuous campaign which has seen him unexpectedly outperformed by his Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli. Antonelli arrived in Zandvoort, the first event after the sport's summer break, with a 50-point lead over Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton at the top of the Drivers' Championship, with Russell a further nine points adrift in third. - Dutch GP: UK schedule and how to watch on Sky Sports - F1 2026 standings | F1 2026 calendar | F1 Gossip Column - Download the Sky Sports app for expert analysis, best video & more📱 - Not got Sky? Latest Sky Sports deals or stream F1 with no contract 📺 Knowing he needs a major turnaround to fight back in the title race, Russell made the perfect start on Friday by beating McLaren's Lando Norris to Sprint pole after Antonelli took himself out of contention by damaging his car in the gravel in the first part of the session. Russell said: "It's been a little while since I've been top of the timesheets in any session. I can't even remember the last time. "It's good to remind myself I've still got it and haven't forgotten how to drive. The break came at a good point." Russell edged out Norris by four hundredths of a second, with Ferrari's Charles Leclerc and the other McLaren of Oscar Piastri also finishing within a tenth of the Brit's leading time. "Of course it's only the Sprint," Russell added. "Qualifying will be the key one and McLaren look really fast and Ferrari look quick. "It's been a real surprise to us as a team these past couple of races. We are in a good spot." Russell appeared to run out of ideas as the summer break approached, with the 28-year-old publicly flip-flopping on whether his driving style was the reason he was struggling to match Antonelli, who is competing in just his second F1 season and only turns 20 two days after Sunday's race. "I came into this weekend with a real open mind because I had no idea how it would go. My confidence level wasn't exactly at my highest," Russell said. "I just tried to remember that feeling of what I needed from myself and the car - almost treating it like the first race of the season again and not overthink things. That seems to have worked well for me. "It's very difficult to actually put those words into action but I know when I'm in the right frame of mind, come Q3 I can always deliver, it's just ensuring I'm in the right frame of mind ahead of that point." Antonelli says 'big-time' damage cost him Antonelli had topped the weekend's sole practice to establish himself as favourite for Sprint pole but made an unnecessary error in the first part of qualifying. Pushing hard on his first lap in SQ1, Antonelli lost control of his car at the final corner and actually did well to stay pointing forward and avoid becoming beached in the gravel. Antonelli was able to comfortably advance through SQ1 and SQ2 despite Mercedes finding holes in the floor of his car, but was two tenths off Russell in SQ3 as he finished fifth. Asked if the damage had impacted him, Antonelli told Sky Sports F1: "Oh yeah, big time. I had a couple of holes in the floor. "When I came in, they initially said it was a loss of 25 [downforce] points. They tried to repair as much as possible, but definitely the damage was still there. I was struggling a lot in the low-speed [corners]. "It is what it is. It was a little bit too much entry speed in the last corner on that first lap. I lost the rear and went through the gravel, and that was pretty much it. "And then obviously it was not easy to build the confidence back. But still decently close, and we'll have another go tomorrow." Wolff: Pressure off Russell's shoulders after engagement! Mercedes chief Toto Wolff suggested Russell may have benefitted from getting engaged to his long-term partner Carmen Montero Mundt during the summer break. Wolff told Sky Sports F1: "George is coming back. I think he feels so much pressure is off his shoulders after she accepted his marriage proposal! "Some solid work on the day to day, he put the dots together and had a very good lap." Wolff appeared to play down the extent of the damage to Antonelli's car, suggesting Mercedes had largely repaired the issue ahead of SQ3. "Kimi lost 20 points [of downforce] with a hole in the floor but we managed to patch it up and it looked like it was completely intact afterwards," Wolff said. "The gaps are so close and he made a little bit of a mistake at Turn 11, pushing too hard on the entry, and it can go quickly." Sky Sports F1's live Dutch GP schedule Saturday August 22 8.15am: F1 Academy Qualifying 10am: Dutch GP Sprint build-up 11am: DUTCH GP SPRINT* 1.30pm: F1 Academy Race 1 2.20pm: Dutch GP Qualifying build-up* 3pm: DUTCH GP QUALIFYING* 5pm: Porsche Supercup Race 1 Sunday August 23 9.35am: F1 Academy Race 2 10.50am: Porsche Supercup Race 2 12.30pm: Grand Prix Sunday: Dutch GP build-up 2pm: THE DUTCH GRAND PRIX 4pm: Chequered Flag: Dutch GP reaction *also on Sky Sports Main Event Formula 1 is at Zandvoort for a Sprint weekend at the Dutch Grand Prix with every session live on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports with NOW - no contract, cancel anytime