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“Just because I was the fastest today doesn’t mean that’s where I’m going to be tomorrow,” emphasizes George Russell after a commendable opening day in the Mercedes car in Bahrain; Watch final practice at 2pm and qualifying at 5pm live on Sky Sports F1 on Saturday
By James Galloway
Last Updated: 04/12/20 9:21 pm
3:31
Despite leading the two practice sessions on Friday, George Russell is still looking to get more out of his Mercedes before qualifying.
Despite leading the two practice sessions on Friday, George Russell is still looking to get more out of his Mercedes before qualifying.
George Russell took applause from the Formula 1 paddock amid a deft timesheader debut for Mercedes that has raised tantalizing questions and prospects for substitute Lewis Hamilton at the Sakhir GP, beginning with qualifying on Saturday.
But Russell himself was eager to strike a note of caution at the end of a Friday that saw him headline both practice sessions on his first day behind the wheel of Mercedes’ 2020 title-winning car.
“The fact that today was faster does not mean that is where I will be tomorrow,” he warned.
In many ways, the 22-year-old is right; Valtteri Bottas, not Hamilton, has often been the Mercedes driver who has set the pace on Fridays in F1 this year, but it is the Briton who has dominated the championship.
F1 teams run different setups and car setups during free practice as they work through different aspects of the race weekend, as drivers explore the limits of the track. That often makes Friday hours particularly misleading.
1:22 See on board how George Russell set the fastest lap time in FP2 for the Sakhir GP
Bottas posted a lap time that was faster than Russell’s in practice two, but was knocked out for an infringement of the track limits, leaving the Finn in the unrepresentative eleventh fastest.
However, the fact that Russell was quickly in the lead relative to the seasoned Finn in a car he was unfamiliar with, and a team he had never driven for on a racing weekend, was unmistakably impressive.
“He has done what this paddock thought he would do,” said Sky F1’s Paul Di Resta, underscoring the high esteem in which the Briton is held after two striking seasons near the back of the field at Williams.
Russell’s performance also received praise from Red Bull boss Christian Horner: “Valtteri is a constant, usually quite racy on Fridays. Obviously, he has been turned down a couple of times, but George has done a very solid job.
“It’s impressive to get through both sessions.”
Sakhir’s GP continues live on Sky Sports F1 on Saturday with practice three starting at 2 p.m. before qualifying at 5 p.m., with preparation starting at 4 p.m.
12:03 George Russell sits down to speak to Sky F1’s Simon Lazenby ahead of the Sakhir GP about his call-up and opportunity at Mercedes this weekend.
Russell’s verdict on his W11 debut and the outlook for the weekend
Russell completed 97 laps around the short but fast Bahrain outdoor circuit, which will be contested in F1 for the first time and is set to produce the fastest lap in terms of duration in history on Saturday.
The fastest lap time for the Englishman was 54.713 seconds. Niki Lauda posted the only previous pole lap below 60 in F1 history (58.79 seconds) at the 1974 French GP in Dijon.
“I thought it was good, to be honest,” explained the King’s born ace Lynn, who has been a Mercedes-led driver since 2017, but has only raced for Williams in F1 so far and has yet to score a point in 36 starts.
“I am working with the best in the business and I am learning a lot with every lap that I am in the car.
“I think the lap times are a bit misleading at the moment and are not a true representation of the pace.”
He noticed his pace in the longer fuel-laden races as the driver practiced for Sunday’s race: Bottas seemed to have an advantage on both the soft and hard compounds, while Red Bull seemed faster than both, and said his teammate was effectively faster in qualifying simulations.
“FP2 was not a great session for me,” he said. “I had problems, especially with the high fuel, and in the end that will be key on Sunday. I still have a lot of work to do to feel comfortable in the car.”
Russell added: “Verstappen was incredibly fast in the long races. Valtteri was the fastest in P2 but eliminated his lap; he probably only won half a tenth in all honesty. So I’m probably a good tenth and a half behind Valtteri at the low end. fuel level “.
More to follow …
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