Saturday at the United States Grand Prix proved to be a nightmare for Mercedes as George Russell crashed out during Q3, leaving the team scrambling to repair his car for today’s race. Adding to their woes, Lewis Hamilton was shockingly eliminated in Q1, leaving him with a daunting task to climb the grid from 19th place.
Russell had been on a promising lap in the final session of qualifying when he lost control at Turn 19, smashing into the barriers and abruptly ending the session. While he had set the sixth-fastest time before the crash, the damage to his Mercedes W15 left the team with a significant overnight repair job ahead of Sunday’s race.
“It’s disappointing, for sure,” Russell said, reflecting on the crash. “We were in the fight for P1 in Sprint Qualifying on Friday, but Saturday just went downhill. On my final lap, I locked up into Turn 12 and was over-pushing in Turn 19 to make up the time. I lost the rear and that led to the crash. I’m frustrated with the damage I caused, and I know the team has a lot of work ahead to get the car ready.”
Mercedes Trackside Engineering Director Andrew Shovlin confirmed the extent of the repairs required, saying: “We’ve got a lot of work to do to get George’s car race-ready, but the team will be working hard through the night to make sure he’s ready for Sunday.”
The day had already been difficult for Mercedes, with both drivers struggling in the Sprint race earlier. Russell, who started from second, quickly fell behind rivals Lando Norris, Carlos Sainz, and Charles Leclerc, eventually finishing a disappointing fifth. Meanwhile, Hamilton gained one position to finish sixth but admitted the car’s performance was a shadow of what it had been on Friday.
“It was tough out there,” Hamilton said after the Sprint. “The car just didn’t feel as strong as it did yesterday, and the warmer temperatures didn’t help. We made some changes before Qualifying to try and get back to Friday’s pace, but it just didn’t work, and I ended up P19.”
Hamilton’s shock Q1 exit was one of the day’s biggest surprises. The seven-time world champion couldn’t escape the first round of qualifying, leaving him with a monumental task in today’s race.
Team Principal Toto Wolff expressed his frustration with how the day unfolded for Mercedes: “It’s been a disappointing and frustrating day for the team. After a strong Friday, we were optimistic, but it quickly became clear in the Sprint that we didn’t have the pace of our competitors. Qualifying was even worse, with Lewis out in Q1 and George’s crash in Q3. Now, we have an uphill battle ahead of us in the race.”
With Russell starting from sixth and Hamilton from 19th, Mercedes will be hoping for a dramatic turnaround in Sunday’s race. But with a damaged car to repair and Hamilton mired at the back of the grid, it will be a challenging day ahead for the Silver Arrows.
“We have to take it race by race now and make the most of any opportunities,” Wolff added. “It’s not going to be easy, but we’ll fight all the way.”
