George Russell briefly though he had a chance of fighting to win the Monaco Grand Prix before the opening lap red flag.
The Mercedes driver started fifth and finished in the same position after running 77 of the 78 laps on the medium compound tyres he switched to during the suspension.Russell had been the highest-placed starter on hard tyres behind the top four of Charles Leclerc, Oscar Piastri, Carlos Sainz Jnr and Lando Norris. They all fitted mediums for their first stint and would have likely switched to hard tyres during the race, while Russell was set to run the opposite strategy.
However, the race dynamic changed when it was red-flagged following a major crash at the rear of the field. Sainz suffered a puncture and went off-track on the opening lap, promoting Russell to fourth, but was allowed to restart from third due to the timing of the red flag. With all cars allowed to change tyres under the stoppage, the leaders fitted hard tyres which they all ran for the rest of the race, while Russell had to switch to medium tyres that would degrade quicker.
“When we lined up on the grid the first time and we were on the hards and the four drives ahead were on the mediums, I was like, ‘this is perfect’,” Russell told the official F1 channel after the race.
“Then when Carlos had his puncture, I genuinely thought, ‘we’ve got a shot here’ – minimum for a podium, potentially even victory – being on that different strategy. We were just going to play a bit of a team game to try and boost our chances. But as soon as that red flag came out, everything went out the window.”
Mercedes have endured another frustrating start to the season without a single podium finish to their name in 2024. Although Russell’s Monaco Grand Prix produced his and Mercedes’ second top five finish of the season, Russell says he is pleased with the performance and result for his team.
“Seventy-odd laps on that medium, closing the gap in on Ferrari and McLaren at the end, I think we can arguably say it was probably one of our best weekends,” he said.
“The team have done an amazing job bringing these upgrades to the car. Having the confidence to put on here in Monaco, as well. There’s a bit of pressure on my side not to dink it. But I think this has been a real positive, weekend for us. I think we can carry that through to the next races.”
Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and
2024 Monaco Grand Prix
- Formula 1 will fix red flag rule loophole which ruined Monaco GP – Domenicali
- Magnussen ‘could have backed off but didn’t’ in Monaco crash, says team boss
- Ocon defends his driving after ‘hurtful abuse’ over Monaco GP crash with Gasly
- How the midfield’s hottest team mate rivalry boiled over
- “He’s really dangerous”: Unheard driver radio from F1’s slow show in Monaco
JOA20
26th May 2024, 19:45
I guess if the top four crashed out George would’ve been able to win…
Jere (@jerejj)
26th May 2024, 20:10
Really
Dane
26th May 2024, 20:12
LOL! Oh George, what an optimist.
MichaelN
26th May 2024, 20:14
If Hamilton could have stayed close enough to ‘do an Alonso’ on the stopping leaders, then… why not. Especially if Hamilton could have jumped Verstappen.
Lot of ifs. But props to George for thinking so far ahead on lap one in Monaco.
Miane
26th May 2024, 21:32
He could try to do a overcut. The front runners would need to stop earlier and return in traffic (for those who can’t understand).
EffWunFan (@cairnsfella)
27th May 2024, 4:31
I understood….. but disaster…… I had already read the sentence. The warning came too late!!!
Ivan B (@njoydesign)
26th May 2024, 23:29
The only reason he was closing in was the fact the ferraris were driving slow to keep the maccas out of the pit window. Have they all really pushed I think they would’ve come out in front of him after their pit stops. It is true though that Mercedes looked better this race, and to make that medium last for 70 laps was quite a feat.
Leclerc
27th May 2024, 9:10
funny George :-)
SjaakFoo (@sjaakfoo)
27th May 2024, 11:48
I mean, I guess there wasn’t a non-zero change of a race win.
But when you’re on his grid spot, statistics aren’t on your side, so perhaps a bit too optimistic, ol’ Jorge.
Andre
27th May 2024, 14:11
So Perez had a chance to win if only he had not been involved in the accident on the opening lap. Joker.
Marcus (@marcusw)
28th May 2024, 14:30
And if my grandmother had wheels she would’ve been a bike!