A few hearts were dropped in the Mercedes garage as Lewis Hamilton and George Russell battled it out for a spot on the podium at the Canadian Grand Prix.
When George Russell and Lewis Hamilton battled it out for a podium spot at the Canadian Grand Prix, Toto Wolff didn’t blink.
The chief executive of Mercedes claimed to have witnessed “much worse” than the orderly battle that took place at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Russell emerged victorious, holding off his teammate in the closing laps to take third position.
It was the team’s first podium in an otherwise challenging season. Therefore, there were undoubtedly a lot of butterflies in the garage when Russell, the 26-year-old, closed the gap on his teammate after making a mistake that caused him to fall behind.
It “went without saying,” according to his race engineer, that they both needed to avoid going too far. Nevertheless, he had to say to Russell over the radio, “We are racing.” Just keep in mind to keep things tidy, please.
On lap 68 of the 70-lap race, Russell passed Hamilton with ease to take third place; the 39-year-old could only settle for fourth. When asked if the fight had been a bit too close after the race, team principal Wolff said, “No, I’ve had much worse.”
That much is undoubtedly accurate. Russell and Hamilton collided during the first lap of the Qatar Grand Prix last year, and Wolff has managed this team for more than ten years, so this driver combination is by no means the most turbulent.
During their time as teammates, Hamilton and Nico Rosberg’s relationship soured, especially during the fiercely contested 2016 Mercedes drivers’ championship race. At one point, the situation got so bad that Wolff threatened to bench them both if the fighting didn’t stop.
Russell was calm when talking to the media about his fight with Hamilton following the race in Montreal. He praised his teammate for their participation in the fierce competition and underlined his confidence in his ability to maintain control of the situation.
He said that going up against Lewis is always fair and difficult, especially since he’s one of the greatest drivers. When competing against a driver as skilled as Lewis, trust is essential. Seeing their racing prowess at the finish pleased him.
Overall, he expressed satisfaction with Mercedes’ speed, saying it was to be expected given factory data showing a notable performance increase from the upgrades.
He thinks everyone will find Barcelona fascinating, but he thinks Mercedes will be competitive.
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