Russell sends a warning to Norris: "We've got nothing to lose"
F1 News
George Russell has said that he and Mercedes have "nothing to lose", sending a warning to Lando Norris and the rest of the grid at the Qatar Grand Prix. The McLaren driver dominated the sprint qualifying session, but Russell put together a fine session that saw him finish just behind the fellow Brit, giving him a great chance to add another win to his 2024 tally.
Mercedes may not be in the constructors' title battle with McLaren and Ferrari in what has been a tough 2024 season, but at certain races this season, there has been some great pace shown by the W15, highlighted by their 1-2 last weekend at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, giving Russell his second win of the season.
In Qatar, the German team showed some more promising pace through Russell, who was able to pip the McLaren of Oscar Piastri to the front row of the grid for the sprint race in the Middle East, stealing P2 away with his final lap of the session.
Positive Russell says Mercedes are "going for the big results"
Speaking to F1TV after the sprint qualifying session, a buoyant Russell said: "It felt really strong all session. The car felt great, and this circuit, it's really one of the best. When you get in the groove and that rhythm, it's so fast. I went flat out through the high speed for the first time on my final lap in SQ3, and it confused the engine a little bit, so I lost a little bit of speed on the exit, But I think Lando was a smidge out of reach."
However, although Russell may not have had the pace today, he believes there is plenty of potential to take a sprint win tomorrow against a battling McLaren: "They are in a championship fight. We've got nothing to lose. We're going for the big results. We'll try and make a good start. Of course, the sprint is just the print, we need to put our focus on qualifying as well. But so far so good," concluded the Brit.
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