George Russell: This rival took Mercedes by surprise in the sprint qualifying

George Russell hadn’t expected this: in the first qualifying session at the historic Silverstone circuit, he was not only significantly slower than his team-mate Kimi Antonelli. Ahead of him were not only Red Bull Racing star Max Verstappen but also both Ferrari drivers. His compatriot and former team-mate Lewis Hamilton even took first place, securing pole position for the Sprint in Great Britain.

When asked whether he had been surprised by the pace of the Ferraris, Russell admitted: “Very surprised! They were clearly lagging behind with the power unit and energy management, but here everything suggests they’re out in front.”

“So that’s a real surprise. We’ve always known they have a great car, but we didn’t expect that from the engine. So some things just don’t make sense at the moment,” added the visibly perplexed Mercedes driver.

And Russell emphasised: “If I’d had to make a prediction, I would have said that Ferrari were quick last week and we’d be quick this week.” Looking at his team-mate Kimi Antonelli, who had set the second-fastest lap, he conceded: “Kimi did a good job, but Ferrari still came out on top this time.”

“Normally, you can take another step forward in the third qualifying segment, but that wasn’t the case for me today. I wasn’t far off third place, but the gap to Lewis and Kimi’s pace is quite big, so I need to analyse that to understand it. It’s all a bit odd,” said the 28-year-old, reflecting on his own performance.

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