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George Russell trimmed Kimi Antonelli's championship lead last weekend after securing his third victory of the season.
The British driver insists the pressure is on Andrea Kimi Antonelli rather than himself as the Formula 1 season enters its decisive phase. Antonelli remains the heavy favourite to claim his maiden title this year, holding a 66-point advantage over Russell in the drivers' standings.
That margin stood at 81 points prior to the Azerbaijan Grand Prix last weekend, where Antonelli's event was derailed by a qualifying crash that forced him to start from the back of the grid.
While Antonelli fought his way back to finish fifth, Russell took his third win of the campaign to eat into his team-mate's championship lead.
Asked by the media whether he feels under less pressure than Antonelli, Russell replied: "Yes, definitely."
"There is far less pressure on me than there is on him. He has had an exceptionally clean season. Friday was probably his first mistake of the entire year in an official session—qualifying or race—and he still managed to finish fifth," Russell explained.
Russell opened the campaign in dominant fashion with an emphatic victory at the season opener in Australia.
Since then, however, he has struggled to consistently match his team-mate, conceding that he had fallen away from the title fight.
"For a number of races, I didn't see myself in the hunt simply because my performance wasn't strong enough. I feel that if the season started today or after the summer break, I would be right in the mix. Now I face a significant deficit. Things can change quickly, so I'm not focusing on that. I'm just aiming to win every race, and whatever happens, happens," the Briton added.
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