George Russell finished fourth in the Sao Paulo Grand Prix, but the Mercedes F1 driver led the entire first part of the race in the deluge of Interlagos. He did not hide his anger on the radio when the red flag came out, offering the three drivers who beat him to the finish a free stop to change tires.
“If we had stayed on the track, we would have been in the lead at the restart in front of Max, Ocon and Gasly. It was easier to lead the race. I don’t know where I would have finished, but I was angry on the moment because I wanted to stay on the track” Russell said.
The Briton regrets not having been able to follow his intuition, after a start to the race which went very well: “It was very difficult, but we were comfortable in the first laps, everything was under control.”
“I was 12 seconds ahead of third place, I managed the lead over Lando. These three laps in the middle were difficult, that’s why I wanted to stay on the track, because I felt that there was would have a Safety Car or a red flag, because it was impossible to drive.”
Tenth at the finish, Lewis Hamilton reveals that his car was very stiff on the bumps and that it has not been worse than that all season: “The car was difficult to drive, but I thank the garage, because they arrived very early this morning, they did a great job this weekend, including at the factory.”
“The team could have won today. My car was like a plank of wood, with no suspension. I was bouncing on the tires in every corner. It was the worst handling I’ve had, especially in the corners, it was very stiff. The next three tracks aren’t as bumpy.”
Morocco