Mercedes suffer further misery with early George Russell sprint qualifying exit

Mercedes' sprint qualifying session ended in disaster on Friday at Spa-Francorchamps as it failed to register a single driver in the final segment. Rookie Kimi Antonelli was the slowest driver in the pack during SQ1, ensuring he will start Saturday's race from the back of the grid. Team-mate George Russell advanced into SQ2 but could only set the 13th fastest lap time of the session. It has signalled a disastrous day for Mercedes at Spa, a track at which it sealed victory 12 months ago. Yuki Tsunoda's struggles continued at Red Bull, as he too failed to advance into the final session with the 12th fastest time, behind Liam Lawson. Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll were the slowest two drivers of the SQ2 segment.