“I knew I was in trouble 10 laps before I crashed”
George Russell took pole position in the race British Grand Prix and he maintained the lead in the early laps but once the rain started his race became more difficult for several reasons as he lacked rhythm and he stated that he noticed something was going wrong in his car.
The problem, which the Briton noticed a few laps before the first pit stops, was over a hydraulic leak forced him to abandon on lap 34 of 52, when he was already leading the race but still fighting for victory.
“I knew it was going to be a long race, I wanted to be patient and we were still fighting for the win, but 10 laps before the failure I knew I was in trouble because I was losing energy.and later the hydraulics failed,” he explained.
When asked if he thought Mercedes had the pace to beat McLaren in all race conditions, the Briton admitted Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri had an edge when the track was damp/wet, but believes it wouldn’t have been a problem as his teammate Lewis Hamilton demonstrated it by finally taking victory.
“McLaren were super fast at the time, it was difficult to match their pace. But I wasn’t too nervous because I knew it was going to be a long race and we had the pace in the car,” he said.
Russell believes that if it weren’t for his mechanical failure, Mercedes could have achieved a doubleBut while the failure to achieve this is frustrating, he admits that He has reasons to be positive and have blind faith in the future of the Silver Stars team..
“It’s incredible. Lewis won. We had a car that in normal, dry conditions could have done a one-two here. It’s clear that we’re back and I think we’ll be fighting for wins more often now.”
“I feel good with the car but obviously it was a big blow. To retire in any race, especially a home race when you had the car to win, is tough but we will try again,” he concluded.
George Russell, Mercedes F1 W15
Photo: Zach Moger / Motorsport Images
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