Russell pitches rule proposal to F1 and FIA after wet Las Vegas qualifying

15:24, 22 Nov

Updated: 15:41, 22 Nov

byBen Winship

Following a slippery Las Vegas qualifying, George Russell has suggested the track surface should be the same at every F1 circuit in order to help Pirelli deliver tyres that perform more consistently across a season.

Like others, Russell struggled on a wet and slippery Las Vegas circuit as the blue-walled extreme wet tyres made a rare appearance.

Lando Norris got the best out of the conditions and qualified on pole position, with Max Verstappen and a surprise Carlos Sainz behind.

After qualifying in P4, the Mercedes driver said: “Yeah, pretty horrendous. It wasn't fun at all but it's a nice challenge. You don't want it to be the same every week. It's a nice challenge, but yeah.

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Several drivers, including wet weather specialist Max Verstappen, said they had never driven a Formula 1 car in such difficult conditions before. But, when told this, Russell said he had experienced worse.

“I think that's probably the drivers who haven't driven in Turkey in 2020 or whatever year this was.

"Everybody knew it was going to be challenging, no tyres are designed for this type of [wet] circuit."

Russell was fastest in both Q1 and Q2 - Photo: RacePictures

Russell proposes F1 rule change

Russell believed that changes can be made to make the tyres behave more predictably across a season.

He said: “I think the job for Pirelli would be a lot easier if all the tarmacs were consistent, because there's already enough variables with temperature, circuit layout, altitude, downforce levels, tyre compounds.

“So then having another variable of the tarmac - you see [what I mean] a little bit."

Steering issue hampered Q3 run

Alongside tricky track conditions, Russell also revealed a steering issue during Q3 which made his hunt for pole position even trickier.

The Briton explained: “I had a steering issue in Q3. I don't know what it was, like a power steering issue.

“It was a real shame, obviously it was quickest in P3, quickest in Q1, quickest in Q2. And on my second lap, I thought I had to stop the car on track because I couldn't turn the steering properly. So I don't know what it was.

“I feel fortunate to have qualified P4 considering. But of course it feels like a missed opportunity."

Russell won from pole in last year's Las Vegas GP - Photo: RacePictures

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