George Russell has confessed that the last few races have been tough for him psychologically, as the driver picked up his first win since the Australian GP. Since winning the very first race of the season, the British driver has seen a marked decline in his overall form.
Coupled with the surprising rise of teammate Kimi Antonelli and multiple reliability issues, the Brit was on the back foot very early in the year. So much so that after the non-points finish in the Monaco GP, George Russell was a whopping 68 points behind his teammate.
At that point, it did appear that the championship was a far cry for the driver. Since then, however, George Russell has shown impressive resilience. He finished 2nd in Barcelona while Kimi suffered a DNF, and in Austria, he secured pole position and the win after getting the better of both Max Verstappen and his teammate.
After the race, George Russell significantly ate into the championship lead that Kimi Antonelli had established and is currently looking at a reduced 40-point deficit. Talking to Sky Sports after the race, Russell admitted that the last few races had been tough for him psychologically. He said,
“It feels great. More than just the result. Psychologically, it has been a tough few races for me. I have had a huge amount of support that has helped me stay resilient and continue to believe in myself. That is what I am most proud about.”
George Russell reflects on his win in Austria
George Russell scraped through to win the F1 Austrian GP, but it wasn’t as straightforward as it seemed at one point. The driver was on much older tires compared to the chasing duo of Max Verstappen and Kimi Antonelli and would reach the chequered flag only 1.5 seconds ahead of the Red Bull driver.
The win didn’t come easily for the Brit, who had been chasing his tail all weekend, but he would nail the final push lap in qualifying to secure the all-important pole. From that point onwards, it was more or less straightforward for the driver as he managed his pace from the start and never looked back. Looking back at the win, he said,
“The tough races definitely test you psychologically. These last two weekends for me have been vitally important to remind myself I can do it. Single lap, race pace, was very strong this weekend – on a track that was probably not well suited to my style. I look forward to heading to Silverstone!”
The next race is George Russell’s home race at Silverstone, and even though the driver doesn’t have a great record at the track, this will be his first-ever visit there in a dominant car.
Edited by Charanjot Singh Kohli