George Russell left Montreal with mixed emotions after securing his and Mercedes’ first podium of the season. Despite his strong P3 finish, the Mercedes driver admitted he made too many mistakes, going as far as to label it an “ugly race.” Max Verstappen has now revealed that he consoled Russell, who was visibly upset.
Russell started the race strong, taking the lead from pole position on a wet track. He managed to hold P1 ahead of Verstappen and even pulled away from the Red Bull in the initial stages. Later, a blazing Norris passed Russell, who made an error at the final chicane, allowing Verstappen to regain his position, leaving Russell in P3, where he ultimately finished the race.
Reflecting on the challenging race conditions, Verstappen shared his thoughts as shared on SkyF1. “I literally told George already before, you know, because he was a bit upset with himself, probably. And I said, ‘Mate, like, these things can happen’. You know, we are all pushing to the limit. Sometimes it works out for you. Sometimes you make one mistake too much and yeah, it can catch you out, but that’s racing as well.”
Sky: George is rueing some mistakes he made | Max: I literally told George already, because he was a bit upset with himself. I said, “Mate, these things can happen”. We are all pushing to the limit. Sometimes it works out for you. Sometimes you make one mistake too much. But that’s racing as well.
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Mercedes team principal, Toto Wolff, also acknowledged Russell’s mistakes during a post-race interview with Sky Sports F1. “A victory was maybe a long-shot or short dream… Alongside this brilliance in today’s race, on the other side maybe there was one or two [mistakes] that we could have avoided.” Despite this, Wolff emphasized that the team is pleased with Russell’s podium finish and the progress they are making with the W15.
While Russell celebrated his podium, his teammate Lewis Hamilton had a tougher race. The 39-year-old finished just behind Russell in P4, missing out on the podium.
Did Mercedes deliberately sabotage Lewis Hamilton’s race in Canada?
Both Mercedes drivers opted for fresher tires in the final phase of the race during a safety car period. Russell chose faster medium tires, while Hamilton was put on slower but more durable hard tires. Despite making a late charge on his teammate, Hamilton could only manage fourth – a result he deemed “one of the worst races I’ve driven.”
After the race, Hamilton expressed his frustration with the tire choice. In his media interaction, he admitted he would have preferred the medium tires. Following the race, Mercedes took to Instagram to celebrate their first podium of the season. However, the celebration was met with backlash from fans.
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Many were angry with the team’s decision to put Hamilton on hard tires, believing it cost him a chance at the podium. The comments section quickly filled with fans claiming that Hamilton deserved the podium and accusing Mercedes of unfairly sabotaging his race.
