Kimi Antonelli will suffer a grid drop penalty this weekend at his home race in Monza. Whilst the Mercedes Powertrains has been the best performing in the field, it has suffered more failures than have the other manufacturers.
George Russell suffered a catastrophic failure with his battery pack while leading the race, resulting in a sudden power unit shutdown and a DNF. At the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, his teammate Kimi Antonelli experienced a late-race electrical shutdown and power unit-related failure while running in second place with just a few laps remaining, forcing him to retire.
Then, following the weekend at Silverstone, Mercedes discovered an underlying hardware issue within Antonelli’s power unit. This forced the team to introduce a fresh engine rotation earlier than planned, eventually triggering the expected grid penalty this coming weekend.
Antonelli to start from the back in Monza
With Antonelli expected to start from the back of the grid in Monza, the opportunity now arises for those chasing him in the drivers’ championship to close the points gap. George Russell and Lewis Hamilton are the closest, sitting some 59 points behind, while the winner of the last two Grands Prix—Lando Norris—is a further 24 back.
So why Russell is not doing the same as Antonelli is something of a mystery, but it may have something to do with when Mercedes plans to use its one engine upgrade token. It is now expected that the Mercedes HPP division will upgrade their 2026 engine around the time F1 returns to the Americas in October.
If Russell can hold out before then and not exceed the engine’s limited number of parts before Austin, he can take the new upgraded engine along with just one grid penalty. With Antonelli taking new engine parts this weekend in Monza, he will be forced to take another whenever Mercedes finally brings its upgraded power unit.
The farcical ADUO upgrade system
This year has not only seen the catastrophic new rule change with the powertrains allegedly providing 50% from the internal combustion engine and 50% from the hybrid, but also a farcical process by which the FIA assesses who has the best power unit and awards upgrade opportunities to the others.
Despite Toto Wolff admitting in Canada that Mercedes has the best overall power unit package, the rules state the FIA must only take into account the power of their internal combustion engines as a measure. To the embarrassment of Mercedes and Ferrari, newcomers to engine building Red Bull Powertrains have been deemed to have the best internal combustion engine on the grid.
Mercedes were the next best and are allowed one upgrade this year and another next, but Ferrari, Honda, and Audi are deemed to be more than 4% down on Red Bull Powertrains’ performance and have been allocated two upgrades this season and another two next year.
Whilst the measurement of power is based solely on the internal combustion engine, teams given upgrade tokens can change almost anything in the entire powertrain. Given Red Bull are the only one of the top four teams not to win a Grand Prix, the system designed by the FIA in association with the teams now looks simply ridiculous.
Honda brought upgrades
Honda brought their first upgrade last time out in Zandvoort, and Fernando Alonso claimed that, together with the B-spec car introduced the race weekend before in Hungary, the team has slashed around 3 seconds from its qualifying deficit to those at the front.
To the casual observer, these upgrades may seem to have changed Aston Martin’s fortunes as their Spanish driver managed to come home 9th in Zandvoort. Yet this result was due to the de facto one-stopper Alonso managed in the Grand Prix, something no other driver attempted.
The expectations in Monza are that Aston Martin will once again be at the bottom of the pile in qualifying, given their Honda engine has poor energy management capabilities, and at a circuit which is energy poor, the Japanese motor will struggle.
Aston Martin boss says more “yo-yo” racing in Monza
Speaking today at Aston Martin’s media event, trackside director Mike Krack believes fans will see a return to the early-season “yo-yo” racing. Further, something often attempted in Monza during qualifying—namely the ‘tow’—will be crucial. “I think yes, I think the lack of energy basically that you have here over the qualifying lap will manifest itself in people looking for that.”
“I hope we will not have a situation like 2019.” Krack is referring to qualifying that year where most of the cars failed to make it round to the start-finish line for their final push lap in Q3 because nobody wanted to be first on track.
“Nobody wants to be first [on the road], probably. But I think there will be more of this than we have seen in recent years. It will definitely be an interesting exercise to validate your models, but also to see how operationally you manage it, because it’s one side to say the effect is big or the effect is small, but also you have to be in a position to be able to follow someone.”
“So there are quite a lot of restrictions on the energy side this weekend. So I think it will be interesting to see how teams will go about it. First of all, in a free-of-tow deployment, but then also in the tow situation.”
“And then also in the race, how easy it will be to pass, and especially the passing and re-passing games probably will be a record of all time here—more like MotoGP,” Krack concluded.
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A.J. Hunt is Senior Editor at TJ13, where Andrew oversees editorial standards and contributes to the site’s Formula 1 coverage. A career journalist with experience in both print and digital sports media, Andrew trained in investigative journalism and has written for a range of European sports outlets.
At TJ13, Andrew plays a central role in shaping the site’s output, working across breaking news, analysis, and long-form features. Andrew’s responsibilities include fact-checking, refining editorial structure, and ensuring consistency in reporting across a fast-moving news cycle.
Andrew’s work focuses particularly on the intersection of Formula 1 politics, regulation, and team strategy. Andrew closely follows developments involving the FIA, team leadership, and driver market dynamics, helping to provide context behind the sport’s biggest stories.
With experience covering multiple seasons of Formula 1’s modern hybrid era, Andrew has developed a detailed understanding of how regulatory changes and competitive shifts influence the grid. Andrew’s editorial approach prioritises clarity and context, aiming to help readers navigate complex developments within the sport.
In addition to editorial duties, Andrew is particularly interested in how media narratives shape fan perception of Formula 1, and how reporting can balance speed with accuracy in an increasingly digital news environment.
