There’s a lot going on at Mercedes, but on-track action hasn’t been one of them. With the Silver Arrows in the throes of a difficult season, George Russell’s podium is a great result. However, it comes at a heavy cost.
With his teammate Lewis Hamilton on the faster tires, Russell was given team orders to let his teammate through. However, the switch never happened and Russell eventually made his way to the podium after Fernando Alonso was made to get off of it.
Susie Wolff watches over Mercedes from above
Toto Wolff’s wife, Susie Wolff usually accompanies her husband to the races but was unable to do so this time around owing to her trip to the United States. However, the newly crowned Managing Director of the F1 Academy wouldn’t want to miss out on the action. Providing an update on Instagram while still in the clouds, she posted on her story: “En route to the US, and yes, f1tv is actually working up here”
Unfortunately, there was not much going on for her team. Wolff tuned into F1 TV for the action taking place in Jeddah, one that culminated with Red Bull crowding the podium and Russell receiving his result after the celebrations.
Not too eventful, except maybe she would be hearing something about the troubling team orders conundrum from her husband later on.
What happened between George Russell & Lewis Hamilton
According to Sky Sports, the 25-year-old racer refused to give up his place and wanted to manage tires to fight Alonso. Adding to the drama, there seemed to be a touch of confusion as Russell remained under the impression that Fernando Alonso was yet to serve a five-second penalty; only to be informed that the Spaniard had already served his punishment later on.
A lot of things played in the champion’s mind, who was easy prey to a lot of overtakes during the session. “Strategy just didn’t really work out for me. Set-up was a bit off. I think if I had the set-up that George had I would have been in a bit of a better position.”
Hamilton’s woes continue as the driver continues to stay clear of the rostrum due to the lack of performance. With Russell cutting it close enough to chance upon a podium, could the universe drop a gift to Hamilton as well?
