Team Order at Mercedes! Is the internal championship battle already decided?

It's not well-liked, but it's part of motorsport!

Several situations shaped the race at what was, for now, the last Dutch Grand Prix. One situation, at least for Mercedes, took centre stage during Lando Norris' (McLaren) victory.

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This was the team order between the two championship rivals Kimi Antonelli and George Russell during the final phase of the race. But is there internal discord at the "Silver Arrows" or will the controversy fizzle out?

Is the team order cancellation no longer valid?

Just a few days ago, Mercedes affirmed that a team order was (still) not an issue at all. "It's not even worth considering at the moment," Russell said before the Dutch GP. But now the situation looked completely different.

Mercedes had actually been eyeing the next race victory for long stretches. Antonelli took the lead ahead of Lando Norris (McLaren) after the Verstappen crash and the restart. Suddenly, however, the championship leader complained about a lack of grip after his second stint on hard tires.

"I didn't have the right feeling anymore and was sliding around too much," the Italian explained in the "post-interview" after the GP. Norris exploited exactly these tire problems on the rear axle and rewarded himself with the race victory after a strong manoeuvre.

Antonelli, however, picked up soft tires after a late VSC phase. But it wasn't enough to fight for the win anymore. Suddenly, Russell was ahead of Antonelli, leading to an internal duel for P2.

Shortly thereafter, the instruction for a position swap followed. For Russell, however, the team order was initially not conclusive. "Is Kimi fighting for the win?" the Briton asked cynically. That was no longer the case, but Russell let the Italian pass anyway.

Antonelli on Russell: "He is a true team player"

In hindsight, Antonelli's gratitude towards Russell was paramount. "George proved himself a true team player. I thank him for second place," said the 19-year-old.

From Russell's perspective, however, the team order could be seen as another championship setback. The now experienced Briton was actually considered a clear championship favourite before the season. Now, however, he is already 59 points behind Antonelli.

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Of course, it's difficult to guess whether Russell would have withstood the pressure from Antonelli in the final laps. However, the Briton managed to keep both Hamilton and Leclerc behind him in the end. Why couldn't he have done the same against Antonelli?

"With the new tires, he would have overtaken me anyway," the 28-year-old Briton assured after the race. Nevertheless, this remains an open question in hindsight.