Sports · Motorsport · 1 hr ago
Russell finishes ninth in Singapore after starting 19th
George Russell finished ninth in the Singapore Grand Prix after starting 19th for Mercedes.
A power-unit failure earlier in the season led to the replacement of several components and a 60-place grid penalty.
The penalty left Russell starting near the back, though three other drivers began from the pit lane.
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff said cars lose downforce when they follow closely in the dirty air on Singapore’s street circuit.
He said the team’s best-case result had been seventh and described ninth as a result to be satisfied with.
Russell also missed a possible advantage from a pit stop under the virtual safety car because it ended as he reached the pit entry.
He said Mercedes needed to find more performance, and Wolff praised the pace Red Bull had shown at recent races.
George Russell finished ninth at the Singapore Grand Prix after starting 19th.
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff said overtaking was difficult because following cars lost downforce in dirty air.
Wolff said the team’s best-case result was seventh and described Russell’s race as damage limitation.
Russell said Nico Hulkenberg defended well and that a Virtual Safety Car ending as he approached the pit entry cost him a chance to benefit from a pit stop.
- Who
- George Russell, driving for Mercedes, finished ninth.
- What
- He climbed from 19th to ninth at the Singapore Grand Prix.
- When
- Sunday; the exact race date is not stated.
- Where
- Marina Bay, Singapore.
- Why
- Russell started 19th after a 60-place grid penalty linked to power-unit component replacements; Wolff said dirty air made overtaking difficult.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
A power-unit failure forced Russell out of the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, leading to replacements of multiple power-unit components, the Energy Store and the Control Electronics Unit.
Russell started 19th after a 60-place grid penalty and finished ninth.
- Finish
- Ninth
- Starting position
- 19th
- Grid penalty
- 60 places
- Mercedes best-case result
- Seventh
- Race location
- Marina Bay, Singapore
What people are saying
I think it's so difficult here to overtake.
So our best case scenario was P7.
First stint made good progress. Second stint, Nico [Hulkenberg] did a good job defending.
I think the main thing for us as a team is to try and understand how we're going to find more performance, because the performance of Red Bull has been very impressive the last three weeks on three very different circuits.
Sources
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