Mercedes surprised by FP1: Does Russell see himself bagging back-to-back poles?

Russell finished in 10th at the British Grand Prix

Updated: 21:31, 27 Jun 2025

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George Russell spoke to Sky Sports to reveal his expectations ahead of the rest of the race weekend in Austria, with qualifying and the Grand Prix still to be run, there's all to play for. Where does the Mercedes driver feel he may stack up at the Austrian Grand Prix?

"I mean first practice was definitely a surprise to us," Russell said referring to the session where he led Verstappen at the flag. "[The] Second practice we definitely didn't have the pace like we did this morning. In the qualy runs and the race pace was a step worse so we need to sort of analyse where that was."

Mercedes' rear suspension which helped them with tyre longevity last time out in Canada, did not yield as big an impact in Spielberg. "The tarmac here is pretty abrasive it's normally a two-stop race that doesn't really suit our strength, so as I said, this morning was a real surprise."

"This afternoon is probably a bit more in line with our expectations, still fighting, trying to get back on the podium but sort of our top five range is realistically well wrapped."

No pole for Russell in Austria

Back to back poles are in the cards for Russell? "Nah I think I mean the McLarens were mighty especially this afternoon. I don't really see that changing. And that was the anticipation coming into the weekend, unfortunately. So we'll do our best, but I don't think we'll be fighting for pole this weekend," concluded the Briton.

Pos.	Driver	Team	Points
1	Kimi Antonelli Kimi Antonelli	MercedesMER	171
2	George Russell George Russell	MercedesMER	131
3	Lewis Hamilton Lewis Hamilton	FerrariFER	125
4	Oscar Piastri Oscar Piastri	McLarenMCL	80
5	Lando Norris Lando Norris	McLarenMCL	79
6	Charles Leclerc Charles Leclerc	FerrariFER	79
7	Max Verstappen Max Verstappen	Red Bull RacingRBR	73
8	Isack Hadjar Isack Hadjar	Red Bull RacingRBR	42
9	Pierre Gasly Pierre Gasly	AlpineALP	41
10	Liam Lawson Liam Lawson	Racing BullsRCB	30
11	Oliver Bearman Oliver Bearman	HaasHAA	18
12	Franco Colapinto Franco Colapinto	AlpineALP	16
13	Arvid Lindblad Arvid Lindblad	Racing BullsRCB	14
14	Carlos Sainz Carlos Sainz	WilliamsWIL	6
15	Alexander Albon Alexander Albon	WilliamsWIL	5
16	Esteban Ocon Esteban Ocon	HaasHAA	3
17	Gabriel Bortoleto Gabriel Bortoleto	AudiAUD	2
18	Fernando Alonso Fernando Alonso	Aston MartinAST	1
19	Nico Hulkenberg Nico Hulkenberg	AudiAUD	0
20	Valtteri Bottas Valtteri Bottas	CadillacCAD	0
21	Sergio Perez Sergio Perez	CadillacCAD	0
22	Lance Stroll Lance Stroll	Aston MartinAST	0

Mercedes surprised by FP1: Does Russell see himself bagging back-to-back poles?

No pole for Russell in Austria

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