Photo: Red Bull Content Pool

Russell's hilarious quip to Verstappen, a veiled dig at Red Bull

12:59, 24 Sep

Updated: 13:55, 24 Sep

byNorberto Mujica

George Russell arrived in Baku unsure if he’d even be fit enough to race. By Sunday evening, he’d delivered another reminder of his consistency, hauling his Mercedes to P2.

George Russell in Monza paddock - Photo: RacePictures

“Yeah! Team Verstappen!”

- George Russell.

Earlier in the season, that sort of result might have fuelled Russell’s belief that he could still wrestle third place in the World Drivers’ Championship from Max Verstappen. But with the Dutchman roaring back into form in recent weeks, Russell admits the fight for P3 may already be slipping away.

“This was a race where there was no overheating at all. It was more about keeping the tyres hot rather than trying to manage them to keep them cool,” Russell told Sky Sports F1 after the race.

“And then you had to really attack the corners to keep the temperature in the tyres. I don’t think it’s any surprise when you see McLaren struggling a bit more. Obviously, they had a bad day yesterday, and they probably should have been at the front, and that would have changed the whole picture for them.

“But you know, the trends are clearly there, that the cooler races were good, McLaren struggling, and vice versa. But Red Bull have really picked up the pace recently.”

That uptick in Red Bull form has left Russell P4 in the standings on 212 points, some 43 behind Verstappen, who claimed victory in Baku. Despite Ferrari and McLaren tripping up across the weekend, Russell downplayed Mercedes’ result.

“We didn’t do anything special, if that makes sense. We just stayed out of the walls. Definitely McLaren going to Singapore will be a different story. At one point, I thought we could maybe fight with Max for P3 in the championship, but he [Verstappen] looks in a pretty strong place again now.”

Team Verstappen joins the Constructors' fight for P2

Russell also flagged Verstappen as a factor in the Constructors’ battle, with Mercedes and Ferrari scrapping for second, echoing the sentiments of Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff.

“Well, I think right now with the current form, there’s as much chance of Max finishing ahead of us as there is Ferrari, to be honest,” Russell admitted.

Beside him, Verstappen couldn’t resist adding: “Red Bull, no?”

Smiling, Russell shot back: “Yeah! Team Verstappen!”

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