Russell 'Disappointed' By First Lap Collision With Hamilton In Qatar

Tuesday, 10 October 2023 at 10:30

Updated at Tuesday, 10 October 2023 at 22:47

Mercedes F1 driver George Russell reacted to the first-lap collision with Lewis Hamilton at the 2023 Qatar Grand Prix.

The start of the 2023 Qatar Grand Prix turned out to be a nightmare for the Mercedes team as the driver duo Lewis Hamilton and George Russell collided in the first corner of the first lap.

Both Mercedes drivers had a great start as they were catching up to Max Verstappen into the first corner. Verstappen was on the inside, Russell alongside him, and Hamilton went late on the brakes from the outside.

However, as the seven-time world champion went late on the brakes and turned into the corner, he misjudged the situation and "sandwiched" Russell, who had nowhere to go and collided with his teammate.

The collision resulted in Hamilton being out of the race and George Russell dropping to the last position. During the post-race interview, Russell explained the incident from his perspective:

"Obviously bitterly disappointing what happened at the start. It all happened so quick. I made a good start, Lewis made a good start, I was alongside Max. And next thing, I just got completely sandwiched there was nowhere to go."

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Mercedes drivers had fought and almost crashed into each other previously at races like the Japanese Grand Prix. Russell explains it's disappointing as the team had agreed to fight together, not against each other.

"I felt disappointed for us both because we spoke this morning, we knew we was going to work together. We both said we both want to be standing on that podium, doesn’t matter what order. I know there was nothing intentional both ways."

In the end, Russell made a great comeback up the grid into the final fourth position performing multiple brilliant overtakes and offering a great show for the fans.

"I’m still glad we managed to finish ahead of Ferrari, get some more points on the board and that we had a fast race car, so, we’ll just take the positives."