Mercedes improved by one place in Austria on Saturday. In the sprint qualifying, the Silvers finished fourth and sixth. In the normal Formula 1 qualifying, George Russell and Lewis Hamilton finished third and fifth. The two benefited from Oscar Piastri’s deleted lap time. During all the hustle and bustle, Lewis Hamilton knocked over the team’s jack, and the team had to pay a 5,000 euro fine.
George Russell: Can fight for the podium tomorrow
For George Russell, the world is back to normal after a brief slump in Spain. This time he finished ahead of teammate Lewis Hamilton in qualifying. “I’m very happy with third place and hope that I can fight for the podium tomorrow,” said Russell.
Like Hamilton, he benefited from Oscar Piastri, whose lap was cancelled for ignoring track limits. The Australian will have to start from seventh place instead of third on Sunday. With their own pace, Mercedes would probably only have been able to finish fourth and sixth, right?
“The last lap in Q3 was a bit chaotic. I saw dust all over the lap. That’s pretty frustrating as a driver, so there was a bit more potential,” said Russell. Whether that would have been enough for Piastri, however, is another story.
However, Russell’s starting position is much better with third place. On the two long straights that follow immediately after the start, he has a double slipstream. Provided he stays close to Lando Norris and Max Verstappen. He already managed a rocket start in Barcelona.
“It’s going to be a bit more difficult here. They’re both always using their elbows, so I’ll just have a look and wait and see,” explains Russell, who is more interested in the race distance. “We’ve made a few changes to the car that should help us tomorrow.”
Hamilton clears car jack: Mercedes has to pay 5000 Euro fine
Lewis Hamilton was about 1.5 tenths behind his teammate. “There were no major problems. We made a few changes and the car felt better,” said Hamilton.
The record world champion had a small mishap on the way out of the pits in Q3. The Brit hit the team’s jack with his W15, which promptly fell over and caused a small collision with the Mercedes’ rear wing. Fortunately, this had no consequences. Nevertheless, Mercedes must pay a 5,000 euro fine, as the team was too careless in letting Hamilton drive out of the pits.
“We lost a lot in the fast corners compared to Max. It’s unbelievable how much faster they are there. I think it was 12 to 13 km/h. But that’s all the downforce we have,” Hamilton sums up.