Mercedes’ decision to split its Singapore upgrades delivered a sharper first‑half performance from Kimi Antonelli’s newly‑tuned W17.
Mercedes splits upgrades at Singapore
The German team deviated from its usual practice and sent Antonelli in the updated Silver Arrow equipped with a revised floor and sidepods, while George Russell drove the older specification after exceeding his power‑unit quota. Russell slipped into the back of the grid for the sprint, leaving Antonelli to test the new content under race‑day pressure.
Antonelli’s sprint‑qualifying breakthrough
During Friday’s sprint session, Russell overtook Antonelli by an average of 0.6 seconds, yet the Briton hit the tape at the end of the race, and his car lost the toe‑in that had carried him through the weekend. Antonelli, meanwhile, maintained a clear and consistent pace, completing the sprint at the top of the field.
All‑day qualification confirms the upgrade’s potential
Both drivers finished 12th and 13th in Q1 before the final lap, 1.2 seconds shy of Lewis Hamilton. Antonelli’s team‑work then saw him extract a two‑second improvement over Friday, propelling him into fourth place—just 0.189 seconds behind Max Verstappen and ahead of the rest of the field.
Commentary from the drivers
Antonelli described the upgraded W17 as “very difficult, very unpredictable,” but confirmed that “the window is very small” yet the car responds better when setups shift. He added, “We’re starting to see what the package can give to us, and we’re building on small windows to push further.”
Russell, acknowledging the gains, said he was “not satisfied with where we are with the new package” and that “optimising the setup will take more time” before he can confirm a full advantage.
Looking ahead to the next race
The team plans to re‑unify the cars for the Austin weekend, enabling dual‑spec experimentation that could further unlock the upgrade’s potential. Antonelli expects a “normal weekend” will allow a deeper exploration of the sensitive window, with the hope that the W17’s new floor and sidepods will deliver consistently faster performance.
"