As the Mercedes W-14s were up and running at Albert Park, so did the spark of rivalry between George Russell and Lewis Hamilton. This was evident after Russell hit out at his teammate Hamilton on the radio on Lap 6 of the Australian Grand Prix.
As the 25-year-old was on lead, his race engineer asked him to manage his tires. This was the time when the former Williams driver lost his cool and hit out on the radio.
Time to race. 💪 pic.twitter.com/HJXM1wnfiC
— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) April 2, 2023
He shouted, “You’re asking me to manage, and I’m being attacked by my teammate.” This comes after the DRS was enabled and the 7-time world champion was in the DRS coverage of his teammate.
As the veteran Briton tried to go around the outside, it was all for Russell to defend everything and vent out his frustration on the radio. Russell, however, lost his lead to Hamilton after he pitted in the safety car window.
How did it all start between Russell and Hamilton?
After a brilliant qualifying performance yesterday and a sad one, the two Mercedes started brilliantly. Fending off the challenge from Max Verstappen, the #63 driver shot himself to lead early on.
This was followed by the 38-year-old, who brought out his elbow and dethrone him from P2 and was right behind his young teammate.
With Russell in the lead and Hamilton in P2, it wasn’t all too easy for the Mercedes drivers to keep the order. But in the end, it was all for nothing, as he had to retire for mechanical failure in Lap 18.
LAP 18/58
It goes from bad to worse for George Russell…
He is forced to retire as fire and smoke emerges from his car #AusGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/umJP1NDrqY
— Formula 1 (@F1) April 2, 2023
This was the Briton’s first Power Unit issue retirement since joining the Brackley-based team last year. With Russell pulling off by the side of the track, things turned into a nightmare for the young Silver Arrows driver at Albert Park.
Toto Wolff apologized to Russell
Alex Albon’s crash in Lap 8 brought out a safety car. The Brackley-based team thought to use this opportunity and send Russell to pit and change tires to hard compound.
However, the gamble didn’t come clean as the FIA red-flagged the race. Hence, the Briton lost all the advantage he gained from the pit stop. As the day turned from good to worse, team principal Toto Wolff apologized to his driver.
Wolff said, “Sorry George, that screwed us, but let’s do the most out of it. We can still go to the front of the podium, or better.”
The 25-year-old held no grudge and said it was not their fault. He also said that the strategy was a good one from the team.
