George Russell may only continue with Mercedes in 2027 if he meets a specific performance clause in his contract this season.

Russell has struggled since the season resumed after the break due to race cancellations, whether due to bad luck or lacklustre performances. In Miami, he came fourth, a full 43 seconds behind his lesser-experienced teammate Kimi Antonelli, and in Canada, he was very unlucky. Having taken pole position and won the Sprint, he had to retire from the race while leading.

At this weekend’s Monaco Grand Prix, meanwhile, he finished outside the points in 12th, which certainly doesn’t bode well for his title chances, especially given Antonelli once again won the race, making it five in a row for the young Italian.

That all means that the British driver has fallen well behind his teammate, Antonelli, by a gap of 68 points. Russell has only collected 25 points over the last three race weekends, whereas Antonelli has picked up 59 in this time. This means the Brit has dropped to third, even behind former teammate and now Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton, in the Drivers’ Championship. Despite this, he remains positive about how this season could end up.

Russell said after Monaco: “When I look at things objectively, if things were to balance out a little bit more, I still think it would be very, very close [with Antonelli].”

George Russell’s Mercedes Contract Clause

Russell needs to keep pressure on his teammate for the remainder of the season, although it seems unlikely that he can really catch him at this point, as the 68-point gap may just prove too much. That could put him in some contractual trouble with Mercedes.

Upon signing his extension last year, a clause was reported by De Limburger to be inserted into his contract, claiming that if he was outdone in the standings by Antonelli, his contract could be void. This seemed unlikely at the time that this was first heard of, as Russell was outperforming his teammate considerably last season. This clause, however, has become a very real prospect come the end of this season, if it proves to be accurate.

Meanwhile, Max Verstappen‘s Red Bull season is also unravelling more and more each week. It is becoming more likely that the four-time world champion could move on from the team that he is synonymous with.

It has long been rumoured that Toto Wolff has an interest in bringing Verstappen to Mercedes, and this season may be a perfect storm for that to occur.

Regardless, performances need to improve for Russell before the season is out. Barcelona-Catalunya is up next for the drivers, and he will be hoping to kickstart his season once more, especially with his seat under threat and a former world champion waiting in the wings.

Tottenham Hotspur could be set to complete another summer transfer agreement as soon as today, according to Football London journalist Alasdair Gold.

Tottenham and ENIC are already showing they mean business in the transfer market this summer, as they prepare to seriously back Roberto De Zerbi following successive 17th-placed finishes in the Premier League.

Spurs chiefs have been working to get four separate deals over the line, with Andy Robertson already confirmed as coming through the door on a free transfer after his contract at Liverpool expired.

The north London outfit are also ‘progressing’ with a deal to sign Manchester City winger Savinho, according to Fabrizio Romano, with a different Italian journalist claiming that the Brazilian has agreed personal terms to move to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on a five-year deal.

Those two additions would immediately boost De Zerbi’s left-hand side, but there will be more additions to follow with a particular focus on bolstering a defence that has conceded 183 Premier League goals in the last three seasons.

Spurs fans may not have to wait too much longer for the next positive update after the addition of Robertson, with Gold predicting the latest announcement could arrive on Monday.

Tottenham Deal for Marcos Senesi ‘Should Get Done’

The deal may have been given the ‘here we go’ treatment by Romano, but Marcos Senesi is yet to be officially announced as a new signing by Tottenham.

Barring any shock last-minute hitches, the Argentina international will be joining Robertson at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium imminently, and potentially on Monday, according to Gold.

Speaking on his latest YouTube video on Sunday night, the journalist said:

“Marcos Senesi that hopefully should get done. That should be the next announcement.

“I was hoping that that might be announced today before I did this video, but it has not as of this point. So, maybe that’ll be a Monday thing. That would be great.”

Tottenham Closing in on Another Defender Deal

The additions of Robertson and Senesi are unlikely to be the last for Tottenham’s backline, with the club currently working on a deal to sign Jan Paul van Hecke from Premier League rivals Brighton and Hove Albion.

The Seagulls are notoriously difficult to negotiate with as they extract the most out of their valuation of their players, and it looks set to repeat with the Netherlands international.

Spurs have reached one major milestone for a potential deal however, with the 26-year-old already agreeing personal terms to join and deciding he only wants Tottenham, despite interest from other Premier League clubs like Liverpool and Chelsea.

Now the challenge will be to agree a fee with Brighton, who are said to value the player at £70m, with Tottenham already having two lower bids for the centre-back rejected.

The arrival of Senesi and Van Hecke at Tottenham would suggest that there will be one big exit in the centre-back position, with that looking most likely to be captain Cristian Romero, who has long been linked with an exit.

Spurs will hope to keep hold of Van Hecke’s national compatriot Micky van de Ven, with GIVEMESPORT sources revealing last month that the Dutchman could actually be open to extending his contract.

The prize money for the 2026 French Open at Roland Garros has been revealed after Alexander Zverev finally claimed his first Grand Slam title by beating Italy’s Flavio Cobolli to win a tense final in five sets.

The 29-year-old German won the men’s competition 6-1, 4-6, 6-4, 6-7, (5-7), 6-1 over 10th-seed Cobolli in Paris on Sunday, while Russia’s 19-year-old Mirra Andreeva also won her first Grand Slam title on Court Philippe-Chatrier on Saturday. In her fourth appearance at Roland Garros, Andreeva beat Maja Chwalinska 6-3, 6-2.

Alexander Zverev Finally Ends Grand Slam Drought

Zverev won his maiden Grand Slam title after losing his three previous appearances in finals. He took the first set with authority before Cobolli battled to even the match at a set apiece.

The German became the favourite after Jannik Sinner and 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic exited following the first week’s heatwave, and he seized the lead again by taking the third set.

In a dramatic fourth, Zverev made a number of double faults which eventually led to Cobolli securing the set. In the fifth, though, he managed to pull away and secure the title as the Italian seemed to run out of steam.

“This court is so special to me in so many ways. I’ve had the best moments of my life on this court. I had the worst moment of my life on these courts,” Zverev said.

Zverev is the first German male to win a Grand Slam singles title since Boris Becker.

Carlos Alcaraz missed the tournament through injury and Djokovic was stunned in the third round by Brazil’s Joao Fonseca. Sinner, meanwhile, was also stunned in five sets in the second round by Juan Manuel Cerundolo.

French Open 2026 Prize Money

The total prize money at the French Open increased 9.53% this year, reaching a record €61,723,000.

Both the men’s and women’s singles champions have secured $3,272,137 (£2,416,908), a 9.8% rise compared with the payouts awarded to last year’s winners. The runner-ups earned themselves $1,636,068 (£1,208,454), while the semi-finalists received $876,465 (£647,386) and the quarter-finalists got $549,251 (£405,695).

First-round losers’ payouts also rose 11.5% to $101,670 (£75,097), while reaching the second round secured $151,921 (£112,214).

“The tournament has decided to continue supporting the qualifying rounds, to help the players who need it most to finance their season and maintain their structure. The total prize money for the qualifying event has been increased by 12.9%. The prize money for the main draw is up 10.1% compared with 2025,” the French Tennis Federation said.

Roland Garros tournament director Amelie Mauresmo said more than 727,000 people came through the gates of the stadium over the course of the event, which is a new record.

“This year, we were truly challenged, whether by the weather or by scheduling constraints. But everyone pulled together, showed great solidarity, and delivered an edition that lived up to our expectations,” she said.