George Russell won the race for Mercedes in Austria this year. That way, he managed to end the win drought. Moreover, the last win for the Silver Arrows before the race in Austria this year came two years back. It was the young British racer who won the 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix as well. Clearly, the German outfit has been on an upward trajectory since the 2024 Austrian Grand Prix. Last year had not been very kind to the British drivers of the Brackley team. They could not win a single race. It was Red Bull, all but one.
Ferrari won only the 2023 Singaporean Grand Prix, with Carlos Sainz Jr. steering the wheel. But 2024 has been different, as the Austrian outfit has not been totally invincible in the first half of the season. Indeed, they have won seven races, all Max Verstappen. So far, there has been no win for Sergio Perez. But Ferrari and Mercedes have won a couple of races each. On the other hand, McLaren won the 2024 Miami Grand Prix with Lando Norris behind the wheel. The last two races saw the Silver Arrows go on top.
George Russell Thinks Mercedes Can Hold On To The Momentum
The next race will be in Hungary, where Mercedes have secured pole positions every year since 2020. Going to the second half of the 2024 F1 season, Toto Wolff’s team has got an advantage. They are the “Big winners” as the new F1 scaling for wind tunnel and CFD time has been set. Last year, the German outfit narrowly beat Ferrari for second place, but they had only 75 percent of the testing time. Since they are in fourth place at present, they will get an extra 10 percent. Hence, the timing looks good as Wolff’s team is looking to go on an upward trajectory. Recently, in an interview with GPblog.com, George Russell mentioned that it is hard to believe that Mercedes is going to Hungary to fight for a third victory in a row. He added that since the upgrades, they have led the last four races.
It has been an incredible turnaround that has super motivated the whole team, believes the young Briton. Even in Montreal, Russell showed big improvements as W15 had a new flexi front wing. Now, the young British driver feels he and his teammate have a lot more confidence in the W15 car. Hence, they can push it closer to the limits. Russell said that the tyres felt better when they drove in the last two races. Now, Mercedes believes they can manage the tyres a lot easier on the edge. Moreover, George Russell added, “It just has a snowball effect in terms of the performance.” Clearly, the Montreal upgrades have made a lot of difference.
Lewis Hamilton’s Teammate Tries To Hold Back A Little
George Russell told GPblog and others on the paddock that the small upgrade has turned into something large as per as lap time. Now, the Mercedes driver believes they can exploit the car more because they have the confidence beneath which has been the biggest change. But the young driver holds back a little, saying, “There are never no guarantees going into the next couple of race weekends.”
Anyhow, George said without a doubt the last four races suggest they had the fastest car. Twice in qualifying and twice in the final race days. However, Russell points out that they were 10 to 20 seconds behind Max Verstappen and Lando Norris in Austria. That’s why he added that it is essential to figure out where they have some drawbacks going into this weekend.
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