George Russell: “It did better than expected” / Formula 1

George Russell was one of seven Formula 1 drivers who did not leave the pits during the second wet practice session in Japan. The Mercedes driver completed 18 laps in the first session of the fourth race weekend of the year and completed the fourth fastest lap. With his best FP1 time of 1:30.530 minutes, he was 0.474 seconds off champion Max Verstappen’s best time. He could only beat his teammate Lewis Hamilton, with only 13 thousand people separating the two after the first hour on the Suzuka rollercoaster.

After the job was done, the 26-year-old summed up: “We did better than expected in the first training session, which was definitely a pleasant surprise. The car felt really good and Lewis and I were happy with the balance of the car.” But he didn’t want to underestimate the good times because he knows: “Our car has felt better in the cold, so we have to be careful.”

Looking ahead to the second practice session, where all drivers were unable to complete representative laps due to poor weather conditions, Russell said: “We focused today on testing different areas to make the car more consistent under changing conditions. Time will tell if these have the intended effect, but it was disappointing that we weren’t able to test them further during the day.”

“It’s a shame for the viewers here and at home in front of the TV that we couldn’t do much in the second training session. I hope we can find a solution to these situations. It’s not the first time something like this has happened, and it won’t be the last time either,” he emphasized. the current seventh in the World Cup.

And with a view to the rest of the weekend, he suspected: “Qualifying will certainly be a big challenge, because it is clear that the tire is enough for one fast lap. If you want to have two new sets in Q3, you have to make sure that every fast test is right. For because most riders can only have three or four sets of soft compound. I think we will see a lot of tire damage, that will be a priority.

2. Studies, Japan

01. Oscar Piastri (AUS), McLaren, 1:34.725 min
02. Lewis Hamilton (GB), Mercedes, 1:35,226
03. Charles Leclerc (MC), Ferrari, 1:38,760
04. Yuki Tsunoda (J), Racing Bulls, 1:40,946
05. Daniel Ricciardo (AUS), Racing Bull, 1:41.913
06. Lando Norris (GB), McLaren, 1:44.977
07. Carlos Sainz (E), Ferrari, 1:52.579
08. Guanyu Zhou (RCH), clean, no time
09. Valtteri Bottas (FIN), clean, no time
10. Alex Albon (T), Williams, no time
11. Kevin Magnussen (DK), Haas, no time
12. Nico Hülkenberg (D), Haas, no time
13. Esteban Ocon (F), Alpine, no time
14. Max Verstappen (NL), Red Bull Racing, no time
15. Logan Sargeant (USA), Williams, no time
16. Pierre Gasly (F), Alpine, no time
17. Sergio Pérez (MEX), Bull Red Racing, no time
18. Fernando Alonso (E), Aston Martin, No Time
19. Lance Stroll (CDN), Aston Martin, no time
20. George Russell (GB), Mercedes, no time

1. Studies, Japan

01. Max Verstappen (NL), Red Bull Racing, 1:30,056 minutes
02. Sergio Pérez (MEX), Red Bull Racing, 1:30.237
03. Carlos Sainz (E), Ferrari, 1:30.269
04. George Russell (GB), Mercedes, 1:30,530
05. Lewis Hamilton (GB), Mercedes, 1:30,543
06. Charles Leclerc (MC), Ferrari, 1:30,558
07. Fernando Alonso (E), Aston Martin, 1:30.599
08. Oscar Piastri (AUS), McLaren, 1:31.165
09. Yuki Tsunoda (J), Racing Bulls, 1:31,230
10. Lando Norris (GB), McLaren, 1:31.240
11. Esteban Ocon (F), Alpine, 1:31,935
12. Alex Albon (T), Williams, 1:31,943
13. Nico Hülkenberg (D), Haas, 1:31.958
14. Valtteri Bottas (FIN), Sauber, 1:32.054
15. Lance Stroll (CDN), Aston Martin, 1:32,055
16. Ayumu Iwasa (J), Racing Bull, 1:32,103
17. Pierre Gasly (F), Alpine, 1:32,277
18. Guanyu Zhou (RCH), Sauber, 1:32,638
19. Kevin Magnussen (DK), Haas, 1:32.803
20. Logan Sargeant (USA), Williams, 1:33,204