F1, Mercedes could have been in the fight for pole position at the Imola GP. That’s what the data suggests, even though Russell’s W16 was fitted with Medium tyres. A move that, for example, Ferrari didn’t think of — and considering the difficulties they had activating the red-banded C6 Pirellis, it could have made a big difference. That’s why they’ll start towards the back, with a race that promises to be extremely challenging given the characteristics of the Imola circuit.
Kimi disappointed, C6 Pirelli activation too complicated
As we already mentioned in our analysis of average cornering speeds — based on the results of the seventh qualifying session of the 2025 season — Kimi suffered from the same issues as the Ferrari drivers. Racing at home made the disappointment even greater for the Bologna-born driver, especially in front of his home fans. Antonelli spoke of his huge frustration, explaining that the feeling he needed to find with the car never materialised.
Getting the tyres up to temperature was practically impossible — even more difficult than during free practice sessions, where he hadn’t faced major issues in that respect. The target temperature at the start of the lap wasn’t right: the tyres were too hot in the first sector. Because of this, the Italian driver couldn’t access the maximum grip offered by the red-walled tyres, and had to struggle throughout the entire lap with his W16.
The 18-year-old is full of regret, as after adjusting the setup of his car, things were clearly going better. A lesson that will certainly help him learn, considering that his lack of experience compared to his teammate didn’t help either. He’ll try to recover positions through strategy, although that will be difficult due to how hard overtaking is at Imola.
Russell was close to starting from pole
Russell was much more satisfied. The Briton, and current leader within Mercedes, gave it his all in qualifying. In a nod to past glory, the team opted for Medium tyres in Q3. A smart move to avoid overheating problems and to extract maximum performance from the tyre. Perhaps more could have been done with the Softs, but the risk of getting it wrong — and ending up like his teammate — was too high. Third place is a satisfying result nonetheless.
That’s because, even with the yellow-banded Pirellis, he managed to place ahead of one of the two McLarens — no small feat, even if Lando played his part in the outcome. It must be said that his track position on the final Q3 run was far from ideal. He lost at least a tenth and a half due to being too close to the Williams of former Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz. Today’s goal? To climb onto the podium once again with his Mercedes.
It seems the targeted upgrades from the German team have worked. That’s the impression within the team. Meanwhile, we analyse Russell’s qualifying performance. As mentioned, the tyre choice was perfectly judged. In the final free practice session, the W16’s balance wasn’t ideal. In fact, the balance of the Silver Arrows seemed worse compared to that of the two Ferraris.
Mercedes: thanks to Aston Martin
Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc seemed to have a more effective car in the corners, but clearly, due to the tyre activation issue, the small advantage Ferrari might have had was completely negated. The reasons are well known and have been thoroughly analysed. However, Russell understood very well how to exploit the Pirelli C6 compounds, maximising the grip.
Experience made the difference against Kimi, who lacked feeling and couldn’t use the tyres effectively. It should be noted that the “brilliant” idea to use the yellow tyre in qualifying came from Aston Martin, which relied on the Mediums for every qualifying run. Mercedes were smart to spot the potential of this compound, reading the evolving situation better than their rivals. Chapeau.
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