An incredible lap by George Russell, who finished qualifying in second place, just 82 thousandths of a second behind Piastri.
George Russell is definitely the MVP of the day, alongside Oscar Piastri. The British driver from Mercedes finished qualifying for the Chinese Grand Prix in second place, just 82 thousandths behind the Australian McLaren driver. A spectacular lap by Russell, who will start tomorrow’s race sandwiched between the two McLarens, with opportunities ahead, as he himself highlighted in interviews in the parc fermé.
Here are Russell’s statements, as he analyzed his outstanding qualifying session: “It’s incredible, honestly. This was one of the toughest qualifying sessions I’ve had in a long time. I tried to change my approach on the out lap, but nothing seemed to work. Then, on the last attempt, everything changed, and I was able to maximize the tires. I switched between different strategies, going faster at first, then slower, trying to find the right balance, and in the end, I took a bit of a gamble.”
The morning Sprint Race provided an important picture, with tire degradation being the main factor. At the end of the race, Russell lost a lot to Leclerc but gained a lot on Verstappen, so tire management will be key. Here’s the thought of car number 63: “I had a big scare in Turn 1, but I managed to pull it all together. I knew I’d done a good lap, but seeing myself between the McLarens was really awesome. I can’t wait for tomorrow.
It will be tough with race pace: even in the Sprint, it was difficult to manage the medium tires, and since no one has tried the hard tires, we can’t predict with certainty how many stops will be needed. We know the McLarens will be fast, but we’ll do everything we can to stay in this position or maybe even try to overtake them.”
Photo: X Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team