Formula 1 just keeps eating pop culture alive, and now the collectible shelves are the proof. Collider has the exclusive: George Russell and Kimi Antonelli are joining Funko's F1 lineup, both Mercedes-AMG Petronas drivers getting the Pop! Rides treatment, and Russell gets a standalone figure too.

If you haven't kept up with the Funko F1 line, the Rides format puts the driver inside their car, which for F1 means tiny versions of the actual liveries, silver-and-teal Mercedes included. It's the closest most of us will ever get to owning an F1 car, and at Pop! prices I'm fine with that compromise.

The Russell standalone is the detail I keep coming back to. Pop! Rides are the default for F1 drivers, so when Funko puts someone on his own two feet, that feels like a deliberate call. Russell has been the steady hand at Mercedes in this new era, and his fanbase keeps growing. I can't claim to know Funko's internal math, but I'd read a standalone Pop as a bet on a guy whose profile is still climbing.

Antonelli getting the Rides treatment next to him says something about where the sport is going too. He's the young guy, the future-of-the-team guy, and now he's on the shelf beside the veterans. Not bad company for a driver still in the early chapters.

I cover movies and TV, so a story about collectible figures is technically in my lane, and honestly F1 has become one of entertainment's biggest crossover success stories, at least from my admittedly couch-adjacent view. The Netflix docuseries gets a lot of credit for pulling new fans in, and now the merch machine runs year-round. My office shelf already has an Optimus Prime and a Shredder on it. I'm not saying a tiny Russell in a Mercedes is joining them. But don't be surprised.

No word yet on exact release timing, or whether these are pre-order exclusives or general releases, so if you want them keep an eye on Funko's drop schedule. My only advice, learned through collectible hard lessons: don't sleep on it.