Russell reveals excuse for Mercedes' gap to McLaren
F1 News
George Russell has finished in P4 during Saturday's qualifying session at the Dutch Grand Prix. The Briton therefore will start from the second row on the grid, but he was still dissatisfied with his result.
Talking to GPblog among others, the two-time Grand Prix winner began rating his qualifying in the Dutch city. "I mean it was just a relief to get through Q1 in all honesty but it's always surprising how quickly the fortunes shift. In Q2 my lap felt half decent and I was at the same pace as McLaren."
Then in Q3, Russell's plan did not come to life, and finished fourth behind the two McLaren drivers and Max Verstappen. "So I went into Q3 thinking I had a shot at pole and the pace just didn't really come. But we're doing a great job bringing performance to the car and we're clearly catching Red Bull, clearly pulling away from the midfield but McLaren are improving at the same rate as us."
Russell names his issue
According to the Mercedes driver, tyres made the difference this afternoon. "It's just the tyres really. I was on a really strong lap, I was matching Lando, and I think I was two and a half tenths up on myself. Tyres overheated and I just lost more performance than I expected in the last half of the lap. So I'm not too concerned, I think P4 is a strong place to start and I think we'll be closer tomorrow."
He concluded: "I don't think any of it's in the car, to be honest. It's all down to the tyres. The car stays exactly the same but you want to start the lap with your tyres as cold as possible. But if you go one degree below the limit, you'll probably lose half a second. If you're one degree over the limit, you lose a tenth."
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12 September 2024
