Mercedes impresses with first race sim at F1's Barcelona shakedown

Mercedes has delivered a strong start to the 2026 Formula 1 pre-season as Andrea Kimi Antonelli completed a full race simulation on day two.

The Mercedes W17 ran reliably on both Monday and Wednesday, with George Russell having completed 92 laps by lunchtime yesterday before handing over the car to Antonelli. The youngster then reeled off 91 laps after the break, including what he said was a complete race simulation on only his second half-day in the car.

Mercedes’ two customers teams McLaren and Alpine have also been racking up the miles with the new Mercedes HPP power unit, with just Williams absent from the Barcelona shakedown.

Antonelli and Russell also led the timesheets with laptimes in the 1m17 range, but these times are unofficial and remain completely irrelevant this week. What really matters is that the first warning signs for the competition are there that Mercedes seems to have its house in order.

“I did a lot of laps and was able to do a race sim, which was nice and the most important thing is that we did a lot of laps, a lot of mileage and a lot of data for the team. It was a good day overall,” the Italian remarked.

“This car is completely new and it’s quite a big step compared to last year’s car. So whenever you go in the car, you have a bit more confidence and then throughout the stint you learn more about the car, you understand the limitations or where you can push a bit more. So, it’s a constant learning every time you go on track.”