20/04/2025 10:10
George Russell believes Mercedes could have followed Max
Verstappen's Q3 strategy which brought him pole position for the
Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. Q3 was red-flagged following Lando
Norris's crash, with only Oscar Piastri having a time on the board
as the field was forced to abort their laps. Verstappen aborted
his first before actually starting it, meaning he had effectively
two new sets of tyres with which to complete the session - but only
if a racing style pit-stop was completed and not the usual garage
turn-around. This meant carrying more fuel than normal, but
Verstappen stole pole by 0.010s from Oscar Piastri's McLaren,
although Russell was third having taken provisional pole himself.
Reflecting on the session, Russell felt the Verstappen strategy was
something Mercedes could have followed. "I have mixed feelings
right now because I felt there was more on the table," Russell told
media including RacingNews365. "There was a lot of pressure going
into that last lap because Oscar had a lap on the board, and the
run plan Max did with the two laps was a really good one, that we
didn't really consider, and just having that lap on the board takes
the pressure off. "So when you go into Turn 1, you've got to really
send it, brake at 75 metres and when you've got no lap on the
board, you've got no bail out and are P10 if I make the smallest of
mistakes, but P3 is much better than I thought." When directly
asked if Mercedes had actively discussed following Verstappen's
strategy, Russell explained that the plan had, in part, been
debated. "It was, to be honest," he said. "It was more discussed
to actually start on the new tyre and then put the used one on
after, but I'm sure it was discussed on the pit-wall. "I'm not
privy to every single conversation because I am driving the car,
and ultimately at that point, I put my trust in the team. "As a
driver, knowing you've got that one lap, especially on a track like
this, you've got to have full commitment, and in Turn 1, I just
didn't have the confidence to have the tyres any cooler."
