Russell makes striking statement on McLaren: 'Able to win every race'
F1 News
McLaren is currently the team to beat in Formula 1, or so it appears. Based on the winter testing in Bahrain and the first Grand Prix of the season, the Woking-based constructor has the fastest car. According to Mercedes driver George Russell, McLaren's gap to the rest of the field is even bigger than the one Red Bull had during their dominant years.
Russell makes a very striking statement about McLaren
“I think their car is definitely capable of winning every race," Russell began. “Their car should win every race but I don’t think they will win every race this year. Let’s see."
Russell then went on to say that McLaren may be dominant in 2025. “The gap they have this year on everybody is bigger than Red Bull has ever had. But when Max was in that [2023] car he was pretty reliable every single lap he did every single run in Q3, throughout qualifying, never really a question. Hopefully, we can be there to capitalise like we were at the [Melbourne] weekend, as that should have been a one-two for those guys," Russell explained in China.
Russell believed Red Bull's 2023 advantage to be “three or four tenths, [and] the advantage we’re seeing from McLaren right now is definitely bigger than that”.
In 2023, Verstappen was incredibly dominant, winning 19 of the 22 races in a season where only three different drivers claimed victory. His Red Bull teammate, Sergio Perez, secured two wins, while Carlos Sainz was the only non-Red Bull driver to triumph, taking victory in Singapore. Despite Red Bull's dominance last year, Russell believes McLaren’s current advantage over the field is even greater than what Red Bull enjoyed at the time.
This article was written in collaboration with Esteban den Toom