Kimi Antonelli has confirmed that Mercedes will continue with its latest W17 upgrade package at the United States Grand Prix in Austin, with understanding the new aerodynamic concept now important not only for the end of the 2026 season but also for the team’s 2027 development direction. The Italian delivered another podium in Singapore, but Mercedes still believes significant work is required to unlock the full potential of the newer specification.
Antonelli finished third at Marina Bay, benefiting in part from Lewis Hamilton’s strategic mistake despite receiving a five-second track-limits penalty himself. The result moved him another step closer to the World Championship, but before attention turns fully to the title, Mercedes still has an important technical question to answer over the package introduced in Malaysia.
Mercedes continues evaluation of new W17 upgrade package
The main technical theme inside Mercedes throughout the Singapore weekend was undoubtedly the effectiveness of the upgrade package first introduced in Malaysia.
To begin resolving its doubts, Mercedes split its programme between the two cars at Marina Bay. George Russell was given the older specification, while Kimi Antonelli continued with the more recent package.
The Italian’s third place in Sunday’s race provided some early answers. Antonelli managed to limit the damage during a weekend that was ultimately more about learning than mounting a genuine attack for victory, even though Singapore had appeared on paper to be a circuit capable of highlighting some of the W17’s strengths.
Russell had already demonstrated that potential during Friday qualifying with the older configuration, further complicating Mercedes’ assessment of which direction offers the strongest overall package.
Mercedes sees potential but must unlock a narrow operating window
Mercedes has repeatedly insisted that the new package contains genuine performance potential and that, according to the data, nothing is fundamentally behaving differently from what was expected.
The difficulty lies instead in extracting that performance consistently. Formula 1 upgrades can increase a car’s ultimate speed while simultaneously narrowing its operating window, making it harder to find a set-up that allows the driver to access the additional performance.
That appears to have happened with the latest W17 specification. Mercedes has changed its aerodynamic concept, and a change of that scale also alters the way the car needs to be operated and set up.
The challenge is therefore not simply establishing whether the new components generate more performance, but understanding how the entire car must be configured to extract it.
Antonelli radically changed Singapore set-up after Sprint
Antonelli’s approach after the Singapore Sprint illustrated the problem clearly. The Italian completely transformed his set-up, moving in almost the opposite direction to the configuration used during the first part of the weekend.
That suggests the new specification requires a significantly different set-up window, perhaps more different than Mercedes had anticipated from its simulations.
Singapore’s Sprint format made that learning process considerably harder. Teams had only one free practice session before Sprint Qualifying, leaving very little track time for detailed comparisons, simulations or experimental set-up work.
As a result, the major set-up changes made after the Sprint were based more heavily on ideas tested overnight in the simulator than on options Mercedes had already been able to assess directly on track.
Antonelli confirms new Mercedes package will stay for Austin
Antonelli has now confirmed that he will continue using the new package at the next round in Austin, while George Russell is also expected to return to the latest specification.
Mercedes’ decision is not based solely on its belief that the upgrade can still deliver more performance. The team also needs to understand the aerodynamic concept as thoroughly as possible because that knowledge could influence its plans for next season.
“Yes, [I’ll continue using this package]. I think we’ll both go back to the new package. It’s important to understand the right window in which to put the car. The potential of this package is there, but it’s right to keep using it because we need to understand which direction to take for next year,” Kimi Antonelli told Sky.
Changing aerodynamic concept could have implications for Mercedes’ 2027 project, which is already at an advanced stage. Learning as much as possible now can therefore help both during the closing rounds of the current championship and in preparing the next car.
Austin practice gives Mercedes more room to experiment
The United States Grand Prix should offer Mercedes a much better opportunity to explore the new W17 package because the weekend returns to a conventional format with three free practice sessions.
“So it will be extremely important in Austin to make lots of changes and try to explore as much as possible, given that we’ll have three free practice sessions again, so that we can also find the right window in which to put the car and get the maximum out of the package,” Antonelli added.
The extra track time will allow Mercedes to carry out more targeted comparisons and test a wider range of settings than was possible during the compressed Singapore Sprint weekend.
The United States Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas is the next round on the 2026 Formula 1 calendar, giving Mercedes a full traditional practice programme before qualifying.
Singapore data becomes crucial before Austin
Despite the limitations imposed by the Sprint format, Mercedes considered it essential to collect as much data as possible at Marina Bay. The team now has a break before Austin in which to analyse that information before continuing its experimentation in the United States.
Austin should therefore represent a much more structured test of the package. Mercedes will have enough practice time to make specific changes, compare configurations and investigate the narrow set-up window Antonelli has repeatedly highlighted.
The broader technical issue has already been evident in Singapore, where Mercedes deliberately ran split specifications to compare the older and newer versions of the W17. Toto Wolff also acknowledged during the weekend that the upgraded car had proved more difficult to drive, while defending the value of the comparison programme.
Antonelli moves closer to 2026 F1 title after Singapore podium
Meanwhile, Antonelli’s third place in Singapore limited the damage and ultimately delivered more than he might have expected after Friday qualifying, when he had struggled with a car he described as difficult and unpredictable.
His race was not completely trouble-free either, with the Italian encountering both a braking issue and a problem with his drinks system.
Even so, another podium means the World Championship is moving increasingly within reach, with the title potentially being decided across the upcoming races in Austin, Mexico or São Paulo. The championship situation can be followed through the Formula 1 driver standings.
“People have been talking about the championship for a long time, and now we’re getting towards the end. I know I’m close, but at the same time I know that if I don’t do things properly, I won’t achieve the result.”
“I have to continue doing the best I can with what I have and try to keep winning as many races as possible. I know that if I do that, the result will come. And I also have a fantastic group of people around me who make sure that I always keep my feet on the ground,” Kimi Antonelli added.
For Antonelli, the next phase of the season therefore carries two parallel objectives. The first is completing his championship campaign, while the second is helping Mercedes understand an upgrade package that could influence not only the final races of 2026 but the technical direction of its 2027 car.
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