George Russell reacts to Mark Webber’s remark that the former got a podium boost by a lucky pitstop under the yellow flag.
Mercedes managed to pick another podium this year, as George Russell got O3 in Australia. His first podium as a Mercedes driver. On the other hand, Lewis Hamilton fetched P4, allowing Mercedes to have a 27-point haul.
Thus, that keeps Mercedes 10 points ahead of Red Bull in the standings. it could have been different had Max Verstappen didn’t retire from the race, as he was in a probable podium position.
Meanwhile, while interviewing Russell after the race, Mark Webber mentioned the lucky pitstop he made. It happened when Sebastian Vettel’s crash caused the safety car to come out.
In response, Russell admitted that in the last three races there have been instances where his team has been lucky. But he warns that he won’t hesitate to capitalise on others’ misfortunes.
“We’ve got to be in it to win it and capitalise from others’ misfortune,” said Russell. “We got a bit lucky twice, but we’ll take it and there is so much work going on to try to get us back to the front. To be standing on the podium is special.”
George Russell scores his second-ever podium in Formula 1! 🙌
A nice end to a solid race for the @MercedesAMGF1 driver 💫#AusGP #F1 @MercedesAMGF1 pic.twitter.com/57CoP7bg1V
— Formula 1 (@F1) April 10, 2022
Also read: George Russell disappointed with Mercedes’ command to yield his podium position to Sergio Perez
Lewis Hamilton was in a tough position against George Russell
Once Verstappen retired from his race, both Russell and Hamilton were promoted to P3 and P4. Soon, Hamilton was closer to Russell, and it propelled him to say: “You guys put me in a really difficult position,” Hamilton said.
Over here Hamilton was clearly complaining about Mercedes’ race strategy. In the end, Hamilton managed to keep his distance from Russell, and allowed the latter to have his first podium with Mercedes.
Hamilton also whined about the pitstop Russell could make under the safety car, as he saw that his pitstop forced him to lose positions, while Russell didn’t, as he changed his tyres under the safety car.
But Hamilton, in the end, managed to overtake Fernando Alonso and got back his position.
Also read: Lewis Hamilton retiring from F1 would not just be a loss for the sport warns his brother
