Italian Kimi Antonelli heads to Budapest this week knowing he will enter the Formula One summer break as the leader of the World Drivers' Championship regardless of the result in the Hungarian Grand Prix, but he realizes that his 45-point lead does not mean he and his Mercedes team can feel complacent or relax.

Antonelli, who achieved his sixth win of the season in Belgium last Sunday, strengthened his lead in the overall standings and cemented the impression that he has successfully adapted to the new hybrid engine era, which relies on engine management and power systems powered by artificial intelligence.

His aggressive driving style helped him maximize the energy packages that rely 50 percent on the battery and 50 percent on the engine, along with his ability to manage the recharging of electronic systems and distribute power efficiently.

As he continues to shine this season and break records, his British teammate George Russell, known for his smooth driving style but trailing by 50 points in third place, has been forced to reassess and refine his approach, while Ferrari has gradually narrowed the gap.

While Antonelli fought and snatched victory at Spa-Francorchamps, Russell was forced to retire after a first-lap collision with his former teammate, the other British driver Lewis Hamilton, and needed much support from team principal Toto Wolff to regain his balance.

Wolff promised to surround his driver with support and containment, and more importantly, he stressed that the team would not focus solely on one driver in pursuit of the World Championship title.

He said: "We have shown in every race so far that performance is there. But we haven't converted enough of that potential into results... We have lost points due to mistakes we made ourselves and we know we need to improve."

He added that he does not want to see the drivers "wasting time competing against each other. We don't want constant fluctuations and then find Ferrari or Red Bull putting pressure on us and we lose the win."

He explained that this means Mercedes "will not deny any driver the win," whether "Kimi or George is ahead."

Wolff also mocked reports of Ferrari's interest in signing Antonelli to become the first Italian driver for the team since Giancarlo Fisichella in 2009.

He said: "We are aware of that. But Kimi has been a Mercedes driver since he was eleven years old. Ferrari should have moved six or seven years ago."

On the track, Ferrari appears as a strong competitor this week at the slow, twisty, and technical Hungaroring, where Hamilton aims to match his personal record set at Silverstone by winning nine times at a single circuit.

Last year, Hamilton started from a late position and finished the race in twelfth place, while Antonelli finished tenth, with both having endured a difficult period that they have overcome this season.

As for Hamilton's Ferrari teammate, Charles Leclerc of Monaco, he started from pole and finished the race in fourth place behind British world champion Lando Norris, his McLaren teammate Australian Oscar Piastri, and Russell.

Those results and recent performances suggest that McLaren could contend for another win, with Red Bull also closing in on the front, after four-time world champion Dutchman Max Verstappen finished a strong third in Belgium, but it is hard to ignore the picks of Antonelli and Hamilton to compete for victory on Sunday.

At the back of the grid, Aston Martin, generously funded and with a disappointing season so far with just one point, is preparing to introduce a major development package designed by design director Adrian Newey, in an attempt to save its season.

The updated power package from Honda will not arrive before the Dutch Grand Prix, and the future of two-time world champion Spaniard Fernando Alonso may depend on the success of these two updates in the coming weeks.