George Russell, driver of the Mercedes Formula 1 team, acknowledges that they cannot deceive themselves about the big difference between them and Red Bull after the Chinese Grand Prix. Despite a good start, with Lewis Hamilton finishing second in the Sprint race, the team struggled in dry conditions and Hamilton only managed ninth place in the main race. Meanwhile, Russell, the team’s hope, qualified in eighth and finished sixth, behind Red Bull, Ferrari, and Lando Norris. Russell admits that Red Bull is still way ahead of everyone else and that Mercedes has a lot of work to do to catch up with them and compete with Ferrari and Norris.
Russell had a good start, overtaking both Ferrari drivers at the beginning of the race. However, he couldn’t hold his position and was passed by Leclerc before the pit-stop phase. He then lost to Sainz when he opted for a two-stop strategy compared to Ferrari’s single stop. Russell believes that his final sixth place accurately reflects the competitiveness of the Mercedes W15 car until improvements are introduced. He considers the highlight of the race his successful overtakes on the Ferraris and acknowledges that sixth place is a fair result for the team at this stage. He emphasizes the importance of returning to the factory and focusing on improving the car’s aerodynamic pressure.
Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff revealed after the race that they have developments planned for the next stage in Miami, which they hope will bring a significant improvement to the team.
