Russell reacts after Mercedes withdraws Right of Review request

The British driver was initially handed a five-second penalty for speeding in the pit lane, the same sanction received by Pierre Gasly. He was then given a drive-through penalty for failing to serve the original penalty correctly, and with the race later interrupted by a red flag, any hopes of securing a valuable points finish were effectively dashed.

Mercedes announced on Friday that it had decided to withdraw its Right of Review request over the penalties handed to Russell during the Monaco Grand Prix. The Brackley-based team also outlined the reasoning behind the decision, bringing its involvement in the matter to an end and leaving McLaren and Red Bull as the only teams still engaged in the fallout from the race in Monaco.

"We had a limited time window in which to apply for the Right of Review during the race weekend in Barcelona, and did so in order to reserve our position in this regard. Our subsequent collaborative discussion with FIA and Formula One has shown their determination to review the unique circumstances arising from the Monaco Grand Prix and to proactively address the factors that caused them," Mercedes noted in a statement.

Russell himself also addressed the situation on social media, revealing that he and Mercedes had explored every possible avenue in an attempt to overturn the Monaco penalty before ultimately accepting there were no grounds to challenge the stewards' decision. The Briton added that his focus is now firmly on the upcoming back-to-back race weekends.

Russell's run of bad luck has not been limited to Montreal and Monaco, with Barcelona also proving costly. Mercedes deputy team principal Bradley Lord revealed that an issue during Russell's final pit stop at the Spanish Grand Prix resulted in an incorrect front-wing adjustment due to a problem with the adjuster gun.

As a result, Russell was left dealing with a heavily oversteering car during the final stint, which compromised his pace in the closing stages of the race and ultimately allowed his teammate to close the gap and make the overtake: “In our final pit stop, we actually incorrectly adjusted the front wing owing to a problem with the adjuster gun, and that meant that he was working with a very, very oversteer-y balance that certainly compromised his pace in the final stages”.

After eight races, Russell now finds himself not only behind his teammate by the equivalent of two Grands Prix' worth of points - a gap that could have stretched to three had Antonelli not retired in the closing stages in Barcelona - but also trailing one of the biggest surprises of the season so far, Lewis Hamilton. The seven-time world champion arrives off the back of three consecutive podium finishes and, most notably, his first victory with Ferrari, which came at the Spanish Grand Prix.