Jordan's Track Talk

Tag: George Russell

  • Russell & Antonelli confirmed as Mercedes line-up

    George Russell and Kimi Antonelli will form Mercedes’ Formula 1 driver line-up for the 2026 season, the team have announced.

    The eight-time World Champions have opted to stick with Russell and Antonelli, who are both products of the team’s junior programme and have guided the Silver Arrows to P2 in the Teams’ Championship with three race weekends to go.

    Russell was promoted to the works team in 2022, after three years at Williams, and has since clinched five Grands Prix wins, the latest of which came at Singapore.

    Next year will be his eighth in F1 and 10th campaign for Mercedes, having joined their junior programme in 2017.

    Rookie Antonelli has had some big peaks this year, including Sprint pole in Miami, a podium in Canada, where he became the youngest podium finisher in F1 history and podium in Sao Paulo, but also endured a difficult run through the European leg of the season.

    Confirming our driver line-up was always just a matter of when, not if. We wanted to take our time, handle the negotiations properly and make sure everyone, on all sides, was happy. I’m pleased we have done that. George and Kimi have proved a strong pairing and we’re excited to continue our journey together. Our focus is now on the final six races of the year, as we fight for second in the Constructors’, and onwards to 2026 and a new era in F1.
    Wolff on the news.

    I am really proud to be continuing our journey together. Next year will mark my 10th since I signed with Mercedes back in 2017. It has been such a long and successful partnership with the team so far and I can’t wait to see what lies ahead, particularly as we embark on one of the largest regulation changes in the sport’s history next year. We are all incredibly focused on making that a success and, for me personally, building on what has been my strongest season in F1 to date.
    Russell on the news.

    I’m super excited to be continuing with the team. I’ve learnt so much in my first season in F1, both in the good moments and the more challenging ones. Those have all made me stronger, not only as a driver but as a team mate too. I want to say thank you to Toto and everyone at Brackley and Brixworth for their continued support and faith in me. Our focus now is to finish this year strongly and secure second in the Constructors’ Championship, before we then turn our full attention to 2026. There’s plenty for us still to achieve in these final six races and we will be giving it our all.
    Antonelli on the news.

  • R18 – Singapore

    George Russell has claimed a dominant victory in the Singapore Grand Prix, the Mercedes driver converting pole position into a flawless win ahead of Max Verstappen and Lando Norris, while McLaren scored enough points to seal the 2025 Teams’ Championship.

    Russell had led cleanly away from P1 on the grid as the race got underway, while the battle behind saw Norris clip the rear of Verstappen’s Red Bull and bang wheels with team mate Oscar Piastri, the Briton subsequently getting past his teammate in a close scrap.

    While Piastri voiced his unhappiness at how the incident had played out, Russell continued to lead up ahead in a commanding performance, the Silver Arrows driver proving unchallenged as he stormed to his second win of the season and fifth career triumph.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Russell, P2: Verstappen, P3: Norris, P4: Piastri, P5: Antonelli, P6: Leclerc, P7: Alonso, P8: Hamilton, P9: Bearman and P10: Sainz.

    What a result for Russell! A very dominating drive by the Mercedes man, he will be hoping the result will gain him a contract extension with the Silver Arrows. As for his teammate, a good race for him too finishing P5 for the young Italian.

    P2 for Verstappen, a really good weekend for him, the car seems to have a bit of pace now, which is needed in his late charge of the title battle. He didn’t really do much wrong during the race, just Russell was zooming ahead.

    A great result for Norris P3 for the Championship contender, a bit of a controversial move on his teammate at the start of the race. And Piastri was not happy at all, but Norris kept his pace up and came home with that all important podium finish.
    Obviously, the team have now officially won the Constructors’ Championship! Now they can fully focus on getting a potential 1-2 finish in the Drivers’ Championship.

    An okay result for Ferrari, they seemed to have more pace before the race. Leclerc finished P6 and Hamilton P8 after an 5 second penalty was applied to Hamilton after the race for exceeding track limits.

    P7 for Alonso, a good result for him and Aston Martin. It’s been a few weekends since his been in the points but good for the team.

    Points for Bearman! A really good result for him in the Haas, again it’s been a few races since his been in the points so a really good showing from the young Brit.

    P10 for Sainz! What a drive from the Williams driver, from being disqualified from Qualifying to getting back in the points, which is a really good result.

    It feels amazing, especially after what happened a couple of years ago. That was a bit of a missed opportunity, but we more than made up for it today. I’m so grateful for the team, they did an amazing job this whole weekend. We don’t really know where this performance came from, but I’m really happy.
    Russell on the win.

  • R10 – Canada

    George Russell has clinched Mercedes’ first victory of the season in the Canadian Grand Prix, a race that ended in dramatic style after a collision between McLaren team mates Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris that saw the latter crash out.

    It had been a strong start from pole position for Russell, the Briton launching away cleanly to hold the lead from Max Verstappen. What followed was a race of different strategies across the pack, with some opting for a two-stop plan while others tried to nurse their tyres on a one-stop.

    Most of the front runners executed a two-stop strategy, setting up for a thrilling finale as the gaps amongst the top five cars became increasingly close in the closing stages.
    While Russell was leading from Verstappen, Piastri was trying to catch Kimi Antonelli for third – but the Australian also had Norris hot on his tail.

    The McLaren pair then engaged in a feisty battle and contact occurred between them after Norris hit the back of Piastri’s car, resulting in Norris parking up at the side of the track.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Russell, P2: Verstappen, P3: Antonelli, P4: Piastri, P5: Leclerc, P6: Hamilton, P7: Alonso, P8: Hulkenberg, P9: Ocon and P10: Sainz.

    What a result for the Mercedes duo, their first win of the 2025 season and done in style by Russell and it makes up from last year’s Canadian Grand Prix. As for Antonelli, his first podium in F1 in his rookie season! It makes him the third youngest podium sitter.

    A very good result for Verstappen, I think he would have liked the win, but with different strategies going on up and down the field it was a difficult one to grasp.
    As for his teammate, Tsunoda finished outside of the points in P12, after starting from 18th… Not a very good weekend for him.

    P4 for Piastri, a shame he didn’t get on the podium as he was closing in on Antonelli, but sometimes it’s not meant to be. However, it wasn’t a smooth sailing race for the McLaren’s, late on in the race Norris was closing in on Piastri and it all came to blows, after Norris went for a very tight gap which he shouldn’t of gone for and clipped the back of Piastri wheel which saw Norris’ front wing come off and damage the front axel skidding himself along the pit wall and out of the race.
    Piastri was okay to carry on and finish the race as he had no damage at all.
    A gutting end to the weekend for Norris, but it was a mistake which he owned up to straight away and took full responsibility, he will be looking towards the next race weekend.

    A decent result for the Ferrari’s, but still not amazing. P5 for Leclerc and P6 for Hamilton, the latter was no where in the race as he suffered damage to his Ferrari early on in the race.

    Points for Alonso again, a good display of the improvements Aston Martin are making, every point scoring finish for the Silverstone based team will be vital at the end of the season.

    Hulkenberg also was in the points again for the second race weekend in a row, lots of improvements made from the Stake team and it is great to see.

    Now we have a little break before the next race weekend and it’s a double header starting in Austria on the 27th – 29th June!

  • RW 22 – Las Vegas

    Max Verstappen became a four-time world champion with an assured drive to fifth place during Saturday night’s Las Vegas Grand Prix, while pole sitter, George Russell and the charging Lewis Hamilton earned a one-two finish for Mercedes!

    Verstappen entered the 50 lap encounter knowing that all he needed to do was keep title rival Lando Norris behind him to secure another title, which the Dutchman achieved by holding position into the first corner and gradually pulled away from the British driver.

    Having held a podium spot after the second round of pit stops, Verstappen opted against a fight when the Ferrari’s arrived at the rear of his Red Bull in the closing laps – both Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc finding a way past before the chequered flag.

    At the front, Russell expertly managed a tricky race in cool, slippery conditions, keeping a fast-starting Leclerc at bay in the early laps – the latter running into tyre troubles as a result of that aggression – and controlling proceedings thereafter.

    The full top 10 are – P1: Russell, P2: Hamilton, P3: Sainz, P4: Leclerc, P5: Verstappen, P6: Norris, P7: Piastri, P8: Hulkenberg, P9: Tsunoda and P10: Perez.

    What a result for Mercedes, 1-2 for the team!! Coming into the weekend I would’ve been surprised however because they’ve had a very strong weekend it wasn’t too much of a shock.
    George kept his cool and grabbed the win from pole position and Lewis just had a superb drive from P10 to P2, it does make you think if he had qualified well, could he of got this win?
    An overall note though from the race is that the Mercs were just flying and no-one could really challenge them so it will be interesting to see if this happens again in the final two races…

    A very good result for Ferrari especially with the battle of the Constructors’ Championship still to win. Sainz finished 3rd and Leclerc 4th! There was a few words said after the race from Leclerc with the radio message. It will be interesting to see how the team goes forward with two races left.

    P5 for Verstappen, I think in an ideal world he would’ve loved to win the race and claim his fourth Championship. However, he got it done with two races left! A big congratulations to Max and Red Bull for a fourth consecutive Drivers’ Championship it’s not an easy task!
    His teammate had made some good overtakes in the race to finish 10th so his managed to score a point, but it’s still very dissapointing.

    A not so good weekend for McLaren, they were kind of nowhere, didn’t really do anything amazing as the pace just wasn’t there. Norris finished 6th and Piastri in 7th, so still a decent haul of points but still not good enough.

    A very good result for both Hulkenberg who finished in P8 and Tsunoda who finished P9, it will help the teams massively in the Constructors’ and with two races left they will be trying to grab as many points as they can.

    A disappointing race for Pierre Gasly, as he DNF’ed from starting P3. He had smoke exiting the rear of his pink Alpine, he was forced to pit lane and retire from the race.

    We don’t have too long to wait till the next race as its this week! And it is the return of the Sprint in Qatar…

  • RW 22 – Las Vegas Qualifying

    Mercedes driver George Russell, stormed to pole position for the Las Vegas Grand Prix, edging out Ferrari rival Carlos Sainz and the flying Alpine of Pierre Gasly in Friday night’s pulsating qualifying session.

    Having topped final practice and led the way after the first Q3 runs, Russell posted a time of 1m 32.312s on his final lap to secure the top spot and end a run of Ferrari and McLaren poles stretching back to his P1 at Silverstone in July.

    Sainz was a tenth of a second back, while Pierre Gasly and Alpine built on their sensational double podium finish last time out at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix to deliver another eye-catching result in third place.

    The full top 10 are- Pole: Russell, P2: Sainz, P3: Gasly, P4: Leclerc, P5: Verstappen, P6: Norris, P7: Tsunoda, P8: Piastri, P9: Hulkenberg and P10: Hamilton.

    A lovely little result for Russell and Mercedes, especially as they have been having good results all weekend so far in the practice sessions. It’s a shame for Lewis to have a lap time deleted as it looked like he would of been top 3 if he carried on the way the practice sessions went.

    What a result for Mr Pierre Gasly!! They have clearly brought upgrades before Brazil and they clearly work or it’s just their car suiting these last few tracks. Who knows but they may aswell keep enjoying it!

    A good qualifying for Ferrari! P2 for Sainz and P4 for Leclerc. They will be hoping for a good result for both drivers as they have got the Constructors’ fight to think about..

    A not so good result for both Verstappen and Norris, P5 and P6 respectively. It will be an interesting race, as Verstappen can win his fourth world championship this weekend! Norris will need to pull something special out the bag in the race to keep the fight going for another week!

    A good result for Tsunoda! P7, what a lovely result! As well as Hulkenberg who qualified P9 too, they will both be wanting to grab some points this weekend!

    A disappointing result for Perez who has qualified in P16, this isn’t what the team needs unfortunately, they are going to be losing so much ground in the Constructors’ with these awful results… He needs to get in the points this weekend to make it a better weekend.

    Awful qualifying for Aston Martin, P20 for Stroll and P17 for Alonso, I still don’t understand to this day how they done so well last year compared to how bad they’ve done this year, it’s just so strange.

    It feels incredible to be back on pole. We’ve been so quick all weekend and I just knew coming into that last Q3 lap… that’s going to be the one that counts. It doesn’t matter what’s happened before then. I had a bit of a moment on my first run and we had to change the front wing, so there was a moment when I thought we weren’t going to make the flag. I’m just so happy. We’ve got to do some deep diving to understand why we’ve been so quick so far this weekend because it was a real surprise.
    Russell on pole.

  • RW 12 – Silverstone Qualifying

    George Russell clinched an impressive pole position in qualifying for the British Grand Prix, with the Mercedes team locking out the front row after Lewis Hamilton claimed second place.

    Having set the initial pace during the first runs of Q3, Russell improved further on his final effort by pumping in a time of 1m 25.819s, putting him 0.171s clear of Hamilton, while Lando Norris followed in third for McLaren to complete an all British top three.

    The full top 10 are – Pole: Russell, P2: Hamilton, P3: Norris, P4: Verstappen, P5: Piastri, P6: Hulkenberg, P7: Sainz, P8: Stroll, P9: Albon and P10: Alonso.

    What a result for the Mercedes duo! Honestly I was hoping for a Brit to be on pole and I really didn’t mind who, but it just makes it even more special that Mercedes have managed to qualify P1 and P2 at their drivers home grand prix! They will be pushing for a double podium, so it’s going to be an interesting race!

    Lando in the top three aswell, making it 3 Brits in the top 3 which we love to see! But he will be bringing the battle to the Mercedes drivers, as he will want this home win more than anything. His teammate, Oscar Piastri starts P5 which isn’t too bad, he will have the hard job of overtaking Max Verstappen.

    A really good result for Hulkenberg, P6! He will be hoping for a good result in the race and grab some more points for the team.

    Verstappen didn’t have the best of qualifying, it just didn’t seem to be all hooked up for the Dutch driver. But starting P4 isn’t all too bad, he can easily make up places. However, his teammate starting all the way down in 19th… not a good day for the Mexican driver, he got beached in the gravel and that was his session over in Q1.

    Not the best result for Ferrari, Carlos Sainz had the better qualifying session finishing in 7th, whereas his teammate Charles Leclerc is starting P11 after he got pushed into the elimination zone of Q2, so a lot of work to do for the Monegasque driver.

  • RW 11 – Austria

    Wow! What a race we had in Austria, it all looked plain sailing for most of the race until a collision took place and it all changed…

    Mercedes’ George Russell claimed a somewhat unexpected victory in the Austrian Grand Prix after a dramatic end to the race which saw Max Verstappen and Lando Norris collide in the battle for the lead, which dropped Verstappen down the order and forced Norris to retire.

    Verstappen originally made a strong start from pole position to hold P1 for much of the race, a thrilling duel with McLaren driver Norris unfolded when both made their final pit stops on lap 52, where RB suffered a rare slower stop due to an issue with the rear left wheel.

    Norris was then hot on the tail of his rival and made more than one attempt to snatch P1. But it all came to an end of lap 64 when the pair made contact, causing the pair to limp back to the pits.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Russell, P2: Piastri, P3: Sainz, P4: Hamilton, P5: Verstappen, P6: Hulkenberg, P7: Perez, P8: Magnussen, P9: Ricciardo and P10: Gasly.

    Russell’s second victory in F1! This just shows that Mercedes have made a step forward, I know he didn’t battle for the win, but this is a part of racing, if the top 2 crash into each other the driver in third 9 times out of 10 will take the lead and go on to win the race especially so late on in the race.
    A very good result, for Mercedes, Hamilton finished 4th aswell a very good points haul for the team!

    Piastriii, McLaren’s last man standing, the Australian made up good ground after qualifying and having his lap time deleted. It makes you think if that didn’t happen and he started P3, would he have won the race?

    Podium for Carlos Sainz! A good result for Ferrari, just what the team needs. However for Charles Leclerc it is a different story, he had contact on the first lap which saw him have to pit for a new front wing and that was basically his race over he finished P11 out of the points.

    A very good result for Nico Hulkenberg P6 for him! And the same goes to Magnussen he finished P8, just what the team needs. And I do have to say their team work between them is great, we have seen it quite a few times this year and they just capitalise on other’s misfortune or go through the field together.

    Ricciardo in the points, it was what he needed, and probably wanted aswell. But he will be needing more than one good performance to get a seat for next year and his only bet really is going to be sticking with VCARB.

    Gasly in the points aswell! The French driver, is on a run of points at the moment with it being his fourth consecutive race with points, so a good drive from him.

    Now we don’t have to wait too long for the next race, as it is only next week! And it is the home race of 7 time world champion, Lewis Hamilton, as well as race winners, George Russell and Lando Norris!

  • RW 9 – Canada Qualifying

    Qualifying for Round 9 is complete, and there was a few shock surprises with a couple of early exits in Q1 and Q2 which led to some other drivers making an appearance in Q3!

    George Russell has taken pole position for the Canadian Grand Prix in an impressive session for the Mercedes driver, with the Brit beating Max Verstappen despite the Dutchman setting the exact same lap time!

    Russell had provisionally secured P1 following the initial runs in Q3 with a lap of 1m12.000s and while Verstappen improved on his own effort in the decisive final laps, the Red Bull driver could only equal Russell’s time.

    The full top 10 are- Pole: Russell, P2: Verstappen, P3: Norris, P4: Piastri, P5: Ricciardo, P6: Alonso, P7: Hamilton, P8: Tsunoda, P9: Stroll and P10: Albon.

    What a result for George Russell! The Mercedes have been showing some strong pace this weekend and that obviously has been shown. Hamilton starts in 7th, as everyone seemed to improve on their laps.

    A very good result for McLaren, P3 and P4, it makes you think what could they do from there? Battle for the win or battle for both podium spots? It will be all to play for!

    A lovely result from VCARB! Both drivers in the top 10 with Daniel Riccairdo in 5th and Tsunoda 8th. The team will be wanting to capitalise on this result in the race and get a decent points haul.

    A tough day for Ferrari as they qualified out of the top 10, Leclerc in 11th and Sainz in 12th. Not the day the Italian team would of wanted, they now have a lot of work to do in the race, as well as staying out of trouble in the midfield…

    A bit of a shock to see Perez out in Q1 again! He will be starting the race in 16th. Which isn’t what the Mexican driver would of been hoping for especially after renewing his contract this week! He has a lot of work to do if he wants to score some points.

    A decent result for both Aston Martins aswell! P6 for Alonso and P9 for Stroll. The team will be wanting to score some big points this weekend as they currently sit 5th in the Constructors and only on 44 points…

  • W15

    Mercedes became the penultimate team to launch for 2024 by revealing their new F1 car with a new livery.

    After McLaren showed an online presentation of their 2024 car, Mercedes posted digital renders of the W15 on their social media, with an on track shakedown after.

    Mercedes joined McLaren on track at Silverstone for some initial running with their new car before heading off to Bahrain for pre-season testing next week.

    The team will be hoping to take a step forward in 2024 in what will be Lewis Hamilton’s final season with the team.
    He will again be joined by George Russell as his teammate, with the Brit entering his third campaign as a Silver Arrows driver.

    After a difficult 2022 season amid the introduction of the new ground effect era in the sport, Mercedes initially stuck with their car concept entering into 2023.
    However, when their issues continued last season, the team started on what they called a “period of renewal”, which should put them in a new direction.

    There are no miracles in this sport. But our ambition and determination are strong. Since charting this new course, development has progressed well. We had several items on our priority list for this car. We will soon see if we’ve made the step we’ve aimed for. As the saying goes: when it stings, it sticks. I believe the previous two years were necessary for us to readjust, recalibrate and reinvent ourselves in certain areas.That root-and-branch approach is never easy. But we’ve made progress and look forward to taking the next step with the W15. It won’t be a linear path, but when we stumble, we will get back up and keep climbing.

    Toto Wolff on the struggles over the past few years.

  • Hamilton signs new deal and Russell extends

    Lewis Hamilton has put pen to paper on a new Mercedes contract that will keep the seven-time world champion onboard through the 2025 season, with George Russell also retained for the same period.

    Hamilton, was in his final year of his existing Silver Arrows deal and has been in talks with team boss Toto Wolff for several months, with those discussions eventually resulting in fresh terms.

    It comes halfway through Hamilton’s 11th season for Mercedes having joined the Brackley team back in 2013 and gone on to set a host of record, from championship wins to pole positions, race wins and so much more!

    Hamilton and Mercedes are currently working hard to return to the front of the F1 grid, their respective title winning runs having come to an end in 2021, but both sides are confident that the renewed partnership will yield further success.

    We dream every day of being the best and we have dedicated the past decade together to achieving that goal. Being at the top does not happen overnight or over a short period of time, it takes commitment, hard work and dedication and it’s been an honour to earn our way into the history books with this incredible team. We have never been hungrier to win. We have learnt from every success but also every setback. We continue to chase our dreams, we continue to fight no matter the challenge and we will win again. I’m grateful to the team who have supported me both on and off the track. Our story isn’t finished, we are determined to achieve more together and we won’t stop until we do.

    Hamilton on the new contract.

    I have grown up with this team ever since joining as part of the junior programme back in 2017. It’s my home and it feels fantastic to extend our special relationship through 2025. After stepping up to the Mercedes race seat last year, I wanted to reward the trust and belief that Toto and the rest of the team placed in me. Taking my first pole position and race win last year was an unforgettable feeling. More importantly though, it’s been great to work with everybody at Brackley and Brixworth to make progress with our car and push forward our development. Their loyalty, vision and hard work is inspiring. We have made some significant steps over the last 18 months and are only getting stronger as a team. I’m excited to help continue to build on that momentum as we progress into 2024 and 2025 as we continue to focus on returning to the very front of the pack

    Russell on extending his contract.

    Continuing with our current driver line-up was a straightforward decision. We have the strongest pairing on the grid and both drivers are playing a crucial role in the team to move us forward. The strength and stability they provide will be key building blocks for our future success. Our partnership with Lewis is one of the most successful in the sport’s history. It was always a formality that we would continue together – and it’s energising for us all to be confirming that publicly. His qualities as a pure racing driver are illustrated by his remarkable track record; but over our years together, he has grown to become a pillar and leader of our team. Those leadership qualities are crucial as we focus on fighting for world championships again. As F1’s biggest global star, he has also played a key role in shaping our commitments to diversity, inclusion and sustainability, that will be foundations for our success in the years ahead. George is a leading light of his generation. He has repaid the faith we showed in him when promoting him to a race seat in 2022. His maiden pole position in Hungary and first Grand Prix victory in São Paulo were standout moments last season. As a driver, he combines razor-sharp speed with the tenacity of a true fighter. But he brings, too, an intelligence and attention to detail that will help him to continue to grow, develop and improve further. He is a natural fit to the team and we are delighted to have extended the relationship for the coming years.

    Toto Wolff on the news.

  • Round 21 – Sao Paulo GP

    What. A. Race. Where do I even start? I hoped for a crazy race and we definitely got part of that mixed into the race.

    But, we now have a new F1 race winner… GEORGE RUSSELL wins the Sao Paulo GP and takes home Mercedes first win of the season as well as his! Not only this but… Lewis Hamilton makes it a 1-2 for the Silver Arrows! Carlos Sainz rounds out the podium in P3.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Russell, P2: Hamilton, P3: Sainz, P4: Leclerc, P5: Alonso, P6: Verstappen, P7: Perez, P8: Ocon, P9: Bottas and P10: Stroll.

    A great weekend for Mercedes, this is exactly what they needed, Hamilton did have a little battle which caused contact between himself and Verstappen but it wasn’t too much where his race was ruined.

    A decent race for the Ferrari team, Leclerc had a battle with Norris which saw the pair also make contact and it looked like Charles’ race was over but his spin into the wall wasn’t as bad as it looked. Norris was deemed at fault for the collision and got a 5 second time penalty.

    Carrying on with McLaren things went from bad to worse as Daniel Ricciardo was caught up in a first lap incident with Magnussen which saw both drivers retiring from the race. Later on in the race Lando then pulled over on the side of the track. A double DNF for McLaren which doesn’t help in their fight with Alpine.

    Now onto Red Bull, they haven’t been on the pace much this past weekend, Max has definitely struggled more than Perez. Now for Perez his battle for 2nd in the Championship is still alive so you would think Red Bull would do anything to help that… Well not according t Max Verstappen, towards the end of the race he was told to let Checo through if MV couldn’t pass Alonso. He couldn’t, but he didn’t let his teammate through which has compromised Perez quite a bit going into the last race now as the Mexican and the Monegasque go into Abu Dhabi level on points…

    A great race for Alpine, they definitely made up for Saturday’s Sprint with a double points finish on Sunday, one more race together as team-mates and then it will be a new driver pairing for both of the drivers, lets hope for no more teammate collisions between the pair of them.

    We haven’t got long to wait as we are back this weekend, for the final round in Abu Dhabi to see how the drivers will all finish in the standings!

  • Round 21- Sao Paulo Sprint

    Round 21- Sao Paulo Sprint

    WOW, we are being treated to such an amazing weekend so far! An amazing qualifying on Friday, and an exciting sprint yesterday what could this mean for the race??!

    But it was George Russell who won the Sprint after keeping it cool and collected once he passed Magnussen and Verstappen! Carlos Sainz finished 2nd and Lewis Hamilton makes it a 1-3 for the Silver Arrows.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Russell, P2: Sainz, P3: Hamilton, P4: Verstappen, P5: Perez, P6: Leclerc, P7: Norris, P8: Magnussen, P9: Vettel and P10: Gasly.

    What a sprint for the Merc boys! George was absolutely on fire, overtaking Magnussen first and then holding on to Verstappen and not letting him get away, it took the Brit 3 tries to get past the Dutchman but once he did he was off. Lewis made up good ground aswell, with Carlos having a 5 place grid drop it makes it an all Mercedes front row lockout for the first time this season!!

    Not the best of days for RB, they didn’t show much pace, it was definitely the wrong decision for Max to be on the Mediums, but Checo did a few good overtakes to get further up the grid. So they have a bit of work to do in the race if they want to win.

    The same goes for the Ferrari boys, especially with Carlos having his penalty. With the Mercedes at the front, the Italian team will be wanting to grab as many points as possible to minimise the gap Mercedes may close in on them.

    Even though, K-Mag dropped down 7 positions he still earned a point and has the opportunity to score more in the race today. As for his teammate who started P20 in the sprint will start the race in P12 after doing some overtakes to get further up the grid, so will be interesting to see how Mick will do today.

    Predictions-

    My top five are- P1: Hamilton, P2: Verstappen, P3: Russell, P4: Perez and P5: Charles.

    I feel like we will get a bit of a crazy race today, only two more races left so the gloves will be off and all teams and drivers will be fighting for those all important points… It will be nice to see Mercedes win today, as they haven’t done this season yet.

  • Round 13- Hungary Qualifying

    Round 13- Hungary Qualifying

    I think most of us expected a wet qualifying, and we didn’t have one but we definitely had a few shock surprises! A drivers first pole position, a Red Bull out in Q2 and much more…

    It was George Russell who took pole position, his first in Formula 1 and the first for Mercedes this season! His followed closely by Carlos Sainz in 2nd and Charles Leclerc in 3rd!

    The full top 10 are- P1: Russell, P2: Sainz, P3: Leclerc, P4: Norris, P5: Ocon, P6: Alonso, P7: Hamilton, P8: Bottas, P9: Ricciardo and P10: Verstappen.

    What a day for Mr Saturday!! I think the Hungaroring may be one of Russell’s favourite tracks! Scored his first points here as a Williams driver last year and now his on pole position for Mercedes a year later!

    A bad day for RB, Perez starts P11, he had a few lap times deleted and then he got knocked out of Q2. Now onto Max… he set a decent time in Q3 but when he went out for last few laps he was complaining of no power and wasn’t able to improve on his lap time which saw him be pushed down to 10th.

    A good day for McLaren both cars in the top 10 and Lando having qualified P4! Infront of the two Alpine’s which is where the fight will be for the British driver. Ricciardo will be hoping to move up a few positions or count on others misfortune, but he has two Bull’s behind him…

    This is what Ferrari needed! Both drivers basically starting next to each other, it gives the Italian team a big chance of points tomorrow, especially with the Bull’s a lot further down and its a track where overtaking isn’t the easiest.

    Alfa Romeo seemed to have a good day, Bottas back in the top 10 and Zhou Guanyu starting P12, a chance of scoring points tomorrow for both drivers!

    Predictions-

    My top five predictions are- P1: Russell, P2: Leclerc, P3: Hamilton, P4: Sainz and P5: Alonso.

    As I said above, it’s a hard track to overtake on, and there is meant to be some rain before the race starts and we all saw how last year went… Or we could get a ‘normal’ race but whats the fun in that!

    Times for the weekend-

    Feature Race F3- 09:05am (BST)
    Feature Race F2- 10:35am
    F1 Race- 14:00pm

  • W13

    W13

    The final car launch of the week is completed! The reigning world champions have revealed the car that Lewis Hamilton and George Russell will be driving this season- the W13.

    Mercedes have won the constructor’s title for eight successive seasons but didn’t manage the drivers title last year as it came down to a last lap battle.

    Mercedes junior, Russell has been promoted to a race seat, replacing Valtteri Bottas after three impressive seasons at Williams. He will be joining 7 time world champion, Lewis Hamilton where he enters his 16th season in F1.

    The launch, saw the team be joined by the Mercedes juniors (apart from Paul Aron), in which they were asked questions and as well them being allowed to ask Lewis, George & Toto questions too.

    “It just takes you back to being a kid,” said Hamilton at the launch. “I think it’s always exciting watching, I mean with this new era of car, we’ve never seen such a drastic change, right? So it’s such a huge change in so many ways, that it’s just been really interesting seeing the designers and everyone coming together to find the best ways of creating a masterpiece.”

    “It feels incredible, obviously Lewis and I have driven so many laps in the simulator of this. We’ve seen all the drawings, we’ve had so many meetings and presentations about it, but suddenly seeing it all come together, seeing all of the men and women who have put so much hard work and grit into making this, and coming together here, I think it looks incredible. And I think the silver [coming] back, we’ve had an incredible livery with the black in the past couple of years – but the silver back on track I think is going to look incredible,” said Russell.

    My Opinion-

    What a beast! We all had a feeling it would be silver and we were right! First of all the silver looks amazing, it is good to have the Silver Arrows back and I can’t wait to see it on track! The car looks clean, but again as I have said previously it may be this new design of the car.

    The actual launch itself was brilliant, I want to take my hat of to Mercedes and say what a brilliant idea to have the young drivers in their programme their and the fact they got to be asked questions and them themselves ask the drivers and Toto questions too is brilliantly thought out. It does show that the team is here to stay and their constantly thinking about the future!

  • 18.02.22

    The fourth car date has been revealed, this time it being Mercedes. They will show the world the W13 on the 18th February, in an online event from Silverstone.

    This year we are due to see a new line-up, with Lewis Hamilton sticking with the team but the change comes within his team-mate, this year he is partnered up with Mercedes Junior, George Russell.

    The pair will be seeking to help the team go for a record of a ninth consecutive title this season, whilst Hamilton will be going for a record breaking eight.

    George has been apart of the Mercedes junior programme since 2017, he got the opportunity to then stand in for Lewis Hamilton at the Sakhir Grand Prix in 2020 where he qualified in P2 just missing out on pole position by 26 milliseconds. He then led the majority of the race until 20 laps to go with a mix up of pitstops/punctures which resulted him in finishing 9th where he scored his first ever Formula One points.

    When the W13 has its covers taken off it will be given a shakedown run around the circuit later on in the day.

  • Russell to Mercedes 2022

    And finally, the announcement we have all been waiting for! George Russell has officially signed a contract with Mercedes and will be Lewis Hamiltons team-mate for the 2022 season.

    Russell has been a Mercedes junior since early 2017 but has been on loan to Williams Racing for the past three years when he got promoted to F1 in 2019.

    The Brit has had a very good racing career, with him winning GP3 in 2017, the Formula Two championship in 2018. Then since moving to F1 its been tough as we’ve all seen however, things are starting to change. Last year at the Sakhir Grand Prix we saw George step in for Lewis Hamilton due to Covid and well, let me tell you it showed how talented George is. He topped the charts in FP1 and FP2, he then qualified P2 in a car which didn’t fit him and didn’t have much time to prepare at all. He was set to get on the podium this race but due to a mix up in tyres and a puncture he was only able to grab a few points but they were his first in F1!

    Now fast forward to this year and all I can say on George’s performance is wow! His getting the Williams car into Q2 and Q3 and pulling everything out of it! He claimed his first points for him in the Williams in Hungary which everyone was very happy about. And now onto rainy Spa, he qualified P2, he beat two Mercedes (one of is his new team-mate) and a Red Bull. Due to the circumstances at Spa the race got cancelled after over 3 hours of delaying it, which meant George got half points and got on the podium for the first time in his F1 career.

    “It’s a special day for me personally and professionally, but also a day of mixed emotions,” said Russell. “I’m excited and humbled to be joining Mercedes next year, which is a huge career step, but it also means I’ll be saying goodbye to my team mates and friends at Williams. It has been an honour working alongside every member of the team, and an honour to represent the Williams name in F1. “Looking ahead to next season, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t absolutely buzzing. It’s a huge opportunity and one I want to grab with both hands. But I’m under no illusions as to the scale of the challenge; it’s going to be a steep learning curve.”

    “We are very happy to confirm that George will have the opportunity to take the next step in his career and join Mercedes,” said Wolff. “He has been a winner in every racing category – and the past three seasons with Williams have given us a taste of what the future could hold for him in F1.” “Now, it is our challenge together to help him continue learning within our environment and alongside Lewis, the greatest F1 driver of all time. I am confident that as their relationship grows, they will form a strong team and deliver for Mercedes on and off the track in the years ahead.”

    My Opinion-

    I think this is fully deserved, his shown what he can do and it’s time for him to take that next step and be fighting for podiums/wins. I also think that Russell and Hamilton would actually work really well as team-mates, I think George would push Lewis and be consistent in scoring points together.

  • Round 12- Spa Race

    Well… I don’t think anyone expected it to go the way it did today…

    First of all I just want to say a big well done to the fans at Spa, I admire every single one of you for for sticking it out in the rain all day to see some racing however, the rain wasn’t holding off today.

    As we done two laps behind the safety car, half points are awarded to drivers in top 10 and I think some teams and drivers will be happy that there is at least some points awarded this weekend!

    George Russell got his first podium in F1 today and some may think its not deserved etc but in my opinion I believe it is, the way he pulls out everything from the Williams is something else. He managed to get it to start on the front row of the grid which I cant imagine isn’t easy but he very much deserves these points, trophy and a better seat…

    Big shame for Red Bull today, when Perez was going to the grid for the start of the race he crashed, and we didn’t think he was going to be able to race due to damage but the FIA said yes but only if they could get all four tyres on in time and to be honest they did it in plenty of time, however because we didn’t have any overtakes etc because of the safety car being out Perez didn’t score any points. They had a chance at free points and close down the gap in the constructors too, but it just wasn’t there day.

    The top 10 are as following: P1- Verstappen, P2- Russell, P3- Hamilton, P4- Ricciardo, P5- Vettel, P6- Gasly, P7- Ocon, P8- Leclerc, P9- Latifi and P10- Sainz.

    Hamilton now leads the championship by only 3 points, so these next two races will mean a lot to both Hamilton and Verstappen. Norris, Bottas and Perez do not move any where in the drivers championship as none of them scored points today…

    One bonus is the fact we don’t have to wait too long for the next race, we’re back next week at Zandvoort!!

  • Round 12- Spa Quali

    WOW! What a quali… I don’t think anyone expected the results we got!

    Max takes another pole position! And next to him on grid will be Mr Saturday himself, George Russell and yes I know! No-one expected that but he had the pace their all qualifying! Hamilton will be starting P3! The rest of the top 10 are: P4- Ricciardo, P5- Vettel, P6- Gasly, P7- Perez, P8- Bottas, P9- Ocon and P10- Norris. Bottas has a 5 place grid penalty which sees him start 13th.

    The rest of the grid look like this (before penalties are added) P11- Leclerc, P12- Latifi, P13- Sainz, P14- Alonso, P15- Stroll, P16- Giovinazzi, P17- Tsunoda, P18- Schumacher, P19- Raikkonen, P20- Mazepin. Stroll also has a 5 place grid penalty which means he will start P20.

    Norris was so quick in Q1 and Q2, unfortunately in Q3 he had a big shunt which ended his qualifying and chance of pole. But the main thing is seeing him get out of the car okay! His being checked over as precautionary measures as usual, updates on him and his car will come as and when there is some. *UPDATE AS OF 22:00pm (BST) Lando has been given the all clear to race tomorrow which is good news, however he does get a 5 place grid penalty because for gearbox change so he will be starting P14*

    Bottas, didn’t have the birthday he was hoping for… qualifying in P8, I expected him to be up there in top 3 at least which is a shame but at the end of the day the points are awarded tomorrow and he has a lot of work to do in the race if he wants to score a decent amount. It does make me think now that George has got himself on the front row in a Williams, will this mean George gets the seat at Mercedes? The announcement should come soon!!

    Daniel Ricciardo starting P4 tomorrow which is amazing for him and the team, definitely shows his starting to get comfortable in the car which is brilliant for the constructors fight against Ferrari, lets hope Daniel gets a good amount of points tomorrow!

    Now I definitely didn’t see both Ferrari drivers starting out of the top 10. I think the team has a lot of work to do over night and figure out a good strategy so both drivers can score points.

    Predictions-

    My top five predictions for tomorrow are: P1- Hamilton, P2- Verstappen, P3- Ricciardo, P4- Vettel and P5- Russell. I think fastest lap will go to Hamilton.

    I think Latifi has a good chance at points again tomorrow, especially if Williams nail their strategy for him. Hopefully we see Bottas finish in the top 10 and not have an incident in the rain like Hungary and Imola.

    I’m very much looking forward to tommorrow, we should see some hard racing and maybe a surprise result!

    Times for tomorrow-

    The race starts at 14:00pm (BST) and 15:00pm (CEST). Don’t forget we also have an F3 race tomorrow as well.