Surprisingly, George Russell secured Mercedes\’ first pole position on Saturday. The Briton went on to finish third for the second time in two weeks at the Hungarian Grand Prix. Meanwhile, his teammate Lewis Hamilton went ahead of him during the final few laps of the race. The seven-time world champ finished second to secure his fifth podium in a row. Undoubtedly, Mercedes has shown some significant developments in the last couple of races and clearly had their strong race of the season in Budapest. Now, Formula 1 has entered a three-week summer break and will return for the 14th race of the season in Spa.
Moreover, the FIA is set to finally bring the new technical directives into action to reduce porpoising and restrict the flexibility allowed in the planks and skid blocks. The newly introduced directive will measure the number of vertical oscillations of each car and limit the floor\’s flexibility. The technical directive was delayed after the FIA amended it, following rumors about several teams finding a loophole in the regulations.
The loophole was around the floor area and was related to the plank and skid blocks. Reportedly, Ferrari and Red Bull were associated with the loophole. However, George Russell is convinced that Ferrari and Red Bull have been taking advantage of the current regulation by stretching their boundaries.
Russell claims that Ferrari and Red Bull are clearly pushing the rules. Not only that, their performance might get affected when the new regulation comes into action during the Belgian Grand Prix. However, it remains to be seen if the change in the technical regulations will allow Mercedes to get closer to the front and increase their chances of winning their first race of the season.
George Russell Feels The Regulation Change Might Affect Red Bull & Ferrari
Talking to Sky Sports F1 after the Hungarian GP, George Russell reckoned that there is no doubt Ferrari and Red Bull are pushing the regulations in terms of their floor setup. The Briton said Mercedes respected the regulations as it was intended. However, there is no guarantee that the regulation change would bring his team closer to the frontrunners. The 24-year-old shared that the change would have made his team slower. However, there is no guarantee about Red Bull and Ferrari as every car is different. He added, \”But it\’s not going to help them, that\’s for sure.\”
George Russell further mentioned that the little changes in regulations would make the race in Spa interesting. It would probably bring the two teams closer to Mercedes. Russell revealed that his team is quite confident and has faith in themselves that they are doing a great job. The Briton concluded, \”There is no reason we can\’t be in the mix.\”