It was a thrilling encounter in the last few laps of the Singapore GP, which led to a dramatic and heartbreaking moment involving George Russell. Pushing for a race win, third-placed Russell faced anguish as he crashed into the wall on Turn 10 of the final lap. Almost a week after the incident, the 25-year-old says, via Spotify’s F1: Chequered Flag Podcast, he wants to put the haunting memory in his rear-view mirror and aims for the best possible result in Suzuka.
With the Japanese GP race weekend underway, Mercedes will look to cover up the ground they lost to Ferrari in Singapore. Russell believes his team has a good chance of earning valuable points during a race enjoyed by most drivers on the circuit. Despite expecting some tough competition from the likes of McLaren and Ferrari, Russell put a question mark on Red Bull’s performance following a drab weekend in Singapore.
Even if Mercedes fails to deliver a top-notch performance, the emphasis will be on putting in a solid run, especially for Russell, to help him get over a heartbreaking end to last week’s racing activities.
George Russell looking to move on from the Singapore GP heartbreak
Speaking to a member from the ‘F1: Chequered Flag Podcast’ panel, Russell revealed how he was feeling going into the Japan race weekend. The British driver revealed the first 24 hours after the Singapore race were difficult for him, but then one of the chief engineers had a phone call with him.
During the call, the engineer helped ease his pain by making Russell realize he had a terrific weekend and that he was the reason why his team was on the verge of registering a race win. Russell added it is now in the past, and his focus is on what lies ahead.
“I’m not gonna let it affect me. It’s history. Looking forward now to the rest of the year.”
Despite hoping for a positive result in Suzuka, the British driver considers McLaren and Lando Norris to be primary contenders for a race win on Sunday. The Woking-based team will head into the race with a new set of upgrades to their car, and Russell believes they might be the fastest team on the grid after securing an impressive P2 finish last weekend.
McLaren could vie for a race win on Sunday
During the interview, George Russell mentioned he expects Ferrari to once again have a quick race pace and continue their recent run of form. However, he does not consider them to be the favorites to win the race, as he believes McLaren will be the big surprise on Sunday. Norris has been in impressive form lately, and with a major upgrade pack at their expense, McLaren could see themselves win their first race of the season.
FP1 CLASSIFICATION
Verstappen is setting a blistering pace #F1 #JapaneseGP pic.twitter.com/PtoSBagvX8
— Formula 1 (@F1) September 22, 2023
However, Russell does not rule out the RB19 and Red Bull from the race despite putting a question mark on their performance. Much like it happened back in 2015 with Mercedes, the Singapore GP could be a one-off event, and the Milton Keynes-based outfit could make a strong comeback in Suzuka- a track that suits the RB19 well.
With vengeance on Mercedes’ and Red Bull’s minds, expectations of continuing their recent form by Ferrari, and McLaren’s hopes of becoming the dark horse in Japan, the race at Suzuka could very well become one of the most exciting races of the season.
