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Russell and Wolff on one plane after $ 1.5 million crash: 'He was upset'

Russell and Wolff on one plane after $ 1.5 million crash: 'He was upset'

04-12-2022 18:29 Last update: 05-12-2022 08:28
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GPblog.com

George Russell did not do a best job as Williams driver with team boss Toto Wolff at last year's Imola Grand Prix by crashing with Valtteri Bottas. It did not cost him a switch to Mercedes, but Wolff was certainly not happy with Russell. He tells the 24-year-old driver in the High Performance Podcast. At the same time, that crash also made the talented Briton stronger, in his own opinion.

Wolff not happy with crash

From 2021, Formula 1 operated with a budget cap. The damage to Bottas' car was estimated at $1.5 million, while only $145 million was allowed to be spent. "So that's one and a half million dollars taken away from the overall budget. So, he was obviously very upset and frustrated about that," Russell insists.

That Sunday night, Russell flew home with Wolff. "He was very upset with the situation and also pretty angry because that was the very first year of this new financial cost cap that have been implemented. "It was all just a messy, not a good situation. We left it for the following day and then I went around his house for lunch on Saturday, and everything was no problem at all, and we moved on from it."

Russell gets to know the Mercedes team

Russell is convinced that mistakes like this in your career make you mature. He states he was "almost happy" with that crash. Moreover, ironically for him, it was also an opportunity to get to know Mercedes' team members even better. He spoke to two of Mercedes' top technical managers. "It was the chief mechanic and chief engineer for him. I spoke to them both: 'Really sorry for how that panned out', and they said, 'don't worry about it'."

He continued: "I feel that in situations like that...you almost grow together, it sort of pulls you closer and, as it happened, I probably built a closer relationship with Valtteri's group of engineers and team, because I knew them already."

News broke in early September last year that Russell would join Williams from 2022 after three years with Mercedes. Russell signed a multi-year contract, the exact length of his commitment was not disclosed. In his first year, thanks to a fourth-place finish in the World Championship, he finished immediately ahead of his teammate and seven-time world champion.