George Russell wants to win home Grand Prix but won't allow that to put him under extra pressure

Russell arrives in Silverstone this weekend brimming with confidence following his win at the 2026 Austrian Grand Prix one week earlier.

The Briton has struggled against teammate Kimi Antonelli, who won five races in a row this season, while Russell has only two wins—Australia and Austria—while revealing that he struggled to get his head around the 2026 Mercedes W17 and the Pirelli tyres.

Speaking to the media on Thursday in Silverstone, Russell discussed his prospects of winning his first home race; he said: “The game plan is just to be as fast as possible.

"I think I've got 100% confidence in myself, but I'm still gaining confidence of how to get the car in the sweet spot.

“Last year, if you were to ask me ahead of a session, 'How confident are you that the car is going to be in a good place and you're going to nail the lap?' That confidence level was far higher because I understood the car and tyres much more than I do this year, but it's improving every race I do.

“I think Austria, historically, was a tough track for me—it was a hot race and I had low grip. They're the sort of conditions I usually hate.

“My performance wasn't perfect, wasn't great, but it was substantially better than if that race was three or four races before.

"Really pleased with the progress I've made with my team to get the car set up in a better place," he maintained.

After winning in Austria, Russell admitted he was driving the car against his instincts since he learned that it made him go faster.

He reiterated that point in Silverstone and said: “The last two weeks I think have been a couple of weeks where I've learnt a huge amount from what I need of the car.

“This has been really great to sort of see what I need, how I need to change maybe my driving style, put it into practice, and then win the race at the first time of trying this new approach was really great. To win was good, a good step forward, and now I can feel to build from there," he explained.

As for getting that first win at Silverstone, the 28-year-old said: “For sure I want to tick the box, but I'm not allowing it to give me any more pressure or be any more relaxed.

"There's so many fans that give you a lot of energy and excitement through the weekend, but when the helmet is on, it's business as usual.

“This was my first F1 race when I was 10 years old, so it's always really special to come here," Russell concluded.

Russell is currently 40 points behind leader Antonelli in the 2026 F1 Drivers' Championship. (Reporting by Agnes Carlier)