George Russell is set to start the Saudi Arabian GP in P3 after a solid qualifying performance for the Mercedes driver. Rookie teammate, Kimi Antonelli, qualified P5, showing the pace of the Mercedes W16 car.
Happy with performance, but had more pace in hand
The difference between the top three was just over one-tenth of a second, underlining the closeness of the competition at the top at this point in the season. Max Verstappen went fastest with a time of 1:27.294, Russell finishing Q3 in third position with a 1:27.407.
When asked if he was content with P3 in such a competitive session, Russell told the print media that although he is happy with the result, he believes he had more pace to show.
“Yeah, I mean, I am happy with P3. I would have liked a bit more, and I felt I was a bit more on the table. Because it was my one and only lap, we had no banker on the board.”
Russell on the specifics of his flying lap at the end of Q3
Russell pointed out that Turn 1 has been a standout point of struggle for the Mercedes’ tyres this weekend at the Saudi Arabian GP. This caused Russell to coddle his tyres a bit and lose some pace as a result.
“I went quite conservative with my tyres, so my tyres were probably a bit too hot. I was just worried about Turn 1. If I made any mistakes at 1, that’s game over and I could be down in P10.”
Although he was being gentle with his tyres, Russell still found massive amounts of time in the first two sectors. The British driver believes it was the final sector that made the difference between a possible P1 or P2 versus his P3 finish.
“Sector 1 was great, Sector 2 was great, and then Sector 3, I just lost a tenth and a half on myself. The gap was a tenth, so I’m kicking myself a bit, but it’s a long race tomorrow and anything can happen.”
Race strategy and competing against the McLarens
Russell reiterates the importance of Turn 1, this time in terms of lap one of the race on Sunday. A clean first lap could aid the three-time GP winner in fighting the McLarens. It also opens up the potential for the right strategy to put them in a position to win the Saudi Arabian GP.
“I think it depends on Turn 1, to be honest. Realistically, if we stay in the order we qualified, I think we’ve got a shot at being in the mix. We can do something different with the strategy, maybe to try and do an undercut or an overcut.”
The McLarens were exceptionally fast last weekend at the Bahrain GP, with Oscar Piastri pulling away from the rest of the grid for a straightforward victory. Russell is conscious of the pace they have found in the practice sessions so far, and believes a similar result is on the table for the Papaya team.
With a high likelihood of a safety car on the streets of Jeddah, it will be all about strategy and opportune timing tomorrow at the Saudi Arabian GP.
“If Oscar gets into the lead, I think we’re all quite realistic that he’ll go off into the distance, and most likely Lando will start on the hard tyres, so he will probably be in the lead at one point in the race, and who knows what can happen there. If there’s a timely safety car, that could really benefit him as well, so it’s not going to be straightforward.”
