'Max Is Still Ahead Of Us': Russell Refuses To Overreact To Mercedes' Shock Speed
F1Friday, 01 March 2024 at 00:30
Mercedes surprised everyone during the first day of the new season, and it seems that even their driver, George Russell.
After Daniel Ricciardo in RB topped the standings in the first Free Practice session, the second Free Practice looked much different. Mercedes took one-two with Lewis Hamilton on top.
The results probably surprised many, including George Russell, who was placed second after Free Practice 2. The British driver, who has recorded his only F1 win with the team, was happy about the result, but at the same time, he remembered to stay grounded.
Since everyone expected Red Bull to be dominant again, Russell doesn't want to jump the gun, and according to what he said after the first day of the new season, even the team didn't understand where the pace came from.
"We're not getting carried away with ourselves. The qualifying pace looked really strong, we still need to understand why it was so good. We made some changes from the test and it exceeded expectations."
While the team topped the standings in qualifying pace runs, what always matters is how fast the cars are in race, and for that, teams run race pace simulations. In those, Red Bull still seemed to be ahead of the German team.
"But ultimately, the long run pace is where it all happens and Max is still ahead of us. It was very close with Fernando, Lando [Norris] and the Ferraris, Lewis and I were very similar as well, so we have a real fight on our hands."
Still, Russell was pleased by the team's performance, as they should be close to Ferrari and McLaren, who may turn into their main rivals. If the teams catch up also to Red Bull, fans may be treated to a four-way fight for the World Championship.
"In race pace we were very pleased with the day, the car is performing really well but we're not going to get carried away with the timesheets just yet."
Still, the British driver reminded that it was Verstappen who demanded during the testing, and while Russell believes the gap has now closed down, it's still there.
"After testing Max looked a long way out in front, now that gap has reduced, but he's still out in front. I think he's still got a healthy margin to the others, rather than just a ridiculous margin to the others. So, by no means does this mean we're back, or we can fight with them just yet."
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