Mercedes has confirmed that the power unit software bug behind George Russell’s recent energy deployment problems was also present on Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s car. Technical director Simone Resta revealed the full extent of the issue during the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend, explaining that the same software was used across the cars even though George Russell suffered more severe consequences.
The week leading up to the Hungarian Grand Prix gave Mercedes an opportunity to conduct an extensive internal investigation into the erratic power delivery that had troubled George Russell during recent rounds of the 2026 Formula 1 season. The engineers eventually discovered what was described as “a hidden element in the power unit code” and moved quickly to correct it.
Mercedes fixes power unit software bug affecting energy deployment
The software bug caused the algorithm to concentrate the deployment of electrical power during the opening part of the lap. As a result, George Russell’s Mercedes was left short of electrical energy towards the end of the lap, compromising performance when the driver still needed power from the hybrid system.
George Russell appeared relieved after Mercedes identified the problem. The British driver said that it felt as though “a weight had been lifted from his shoulders” because he had effectively tried every available solution without achieving any meaningful improvement.
The discovery provided an important explanation for a problem that had persisted across several events. Mercedes arrived in Budapest attempting to respond after a challenging qualifying session, although the team believed its Hungarian Grand Prix race pace offered more encouragement than its single-lap performance.
Simone Resta reveals Kimi Antonelli had the same Mercedes bug
During Friday’s press conference at the Hungaroring, Mercedes technical director Simone Resta revealed that championship leader Andrea Kimi Antonelli had experienced the same underlying problem.
“The software is the same for all the cars and the bug was present in every car,” Simone Resta explained, leaving no doubt about the extent of the issue.
However, the fault mysteriously had a greater effect on George Russell than on Andrea Kimi Antonelli.
“It affected George more than Kimi,” Simone Resta continued. “We also have to bear in mind that Kimi had a fresher power unit, which is always better than one that has been used extensively.”
Fresh engine addresses George Russell’s remaining disadvantage in Hungary
The difference in power unit mileage will be addressed from the Hungarian Grand Prix, with George Russell receiving a new engine following the water leak he suffered during qualifying.
The problem forced Mercedes to make a power unit change for George Russell in Hungary. Combined with the software correction, the fresh engine should eliminate the two factors identified by Simone Resta when explaining why the deployment bug had been more damaging for George Russell than for Andrea Kimi Antonelli.
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