Mixed feelings at Mercedes! George Russell, who stood on the podium in the last two Grands Prix, qualified fifth for the Japanese GP on Saturday. After several promising free practice sessions, the Brit regrets a failed fast lap in Q3. Teammate Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who clocked the sixth time at Suzuka, is on the other hand very satisfied with his performance.
George Russell has mixed feelings about his qualification for tomorrow’s Grand Prix. The Brit eventually clocked the fifth time, but felt he could have gotten more out of the car. “Today, P5 definitely feels like a subpar performance for us,” the Mercedes driver reacted afterwards. “We were incredibly strong all weekend, so I truly believe we could have competed for the front row.” The first two spots are now occupied by Max Verstappen and Lando Norris. The former secured pole position with a phenomenal final lap.
According to Russell, the moment of truth did not go his way: “Unfortunately, I lost time at the critical moment in that final lap. As the session progressed, the track cooled down. For our last attempt, the tires were a bit too cold – at the start of the lap, I already had a big slide in turn two. That cost me a few tenths, preventing me from improving my previous time.”
Despite this, Russell remains optimistic about his chances on Sunday. “Although we are naturally disappointed, P5 is not a bad starting point,” he continued. “We’ve had a good pace all weekend and I have confidence in the car. We’ll have to wait and see what the weather does. Wet or dry, I think we’re definitely fighting for a podium spot. In Melbourne, we’ve already seen how chaotic a race can become, so let’s take advantage of the circumstances.”
Satisfied Antonelli
Unlike teammate George Russell, Mercedes rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli was satisfied after the qualification. The young Italian secured the sixth starting spot. “I’m pleased with how my session went,” he grinned. “During the free practice sessions, I wasn’t able to put in a good lap, so to be honest, I didn’t have much confidence in the qualification.”
Antonelli emphasized the important role of Mercedes: “Bono (my race engineer) was a great support, along with Valtteri Bottas, who gave me a lot of advice. I made progress lap after lap and P6 is ultimately not a bad result. There was certainly more performance to be found in the car; I was still having a bit of trouble with sector one. If I had improved that, we might have been able to move further forward.” Looking ahead to the race, Antonelli hopes to benefit from some rainfall, just like in Melbourne. “I certainly wouldn’t mind if it starts to rain,” he concluded enthusiastically. “Hopefully, we can score some good points tomorrow.”
