Mercedes is back on the podium: George Russell races on Sunday in Bahrain despite a series of problems in second place, confirming that Suzuka was recently only a slip for the silver arrows – because in all other races in 2025 the Brit always ends up in the top 3.
Much to the delight of Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff: “Usually this should be one of our really worse routes, with the rough asphalt and the temperature,” the Austrian is surprised at “Sky” – just like Russell himself: “That was a real hardest test for us. We knew that our car liked the services in China and Suzuka were therefore not too surprise here in Bahrain. Requirements, that was a question mark. “
In the end, however, there is “a strong weekend”, “that makes me very confident for the season,” says Russell. He gets a personal extra nob from his boss: “I think the driver saved the result today. The brake-by-wire system failed sporadically, and he somehow managed to manage it without losing time,” reveals Wolff after crossing.
Wolff praises Russell and explains the tire selection at the end
The Austrian adds: “I am really almost wordless about his driving.” Because in parallel to the problem, the Russell team also presented additional difficulties with the strategy: “[Er hat] Certainly not the right tire at the end, but that was the only one we had – except the hard, and we didn’t want it, “explains Wolff Mercedes’ choice for the red tire in the final intern after the safety car.
Nevertheless, Russell succeeds in keeping the much faster McLaren from Lando Norris behind, “with a car that broke apart”, Wolff is amazed: “Staiting is almost indescribable in such a situation. He spared the soft tires well, was quickly when it got on it, and has defended himself excellently in the crucial moments – so off George.”
However, the silver arrows still had to tremble after the finish line, because the race management also examined a DRS outlet in the course of the electronic defect on the Mercedes. Wolff clarifies: “The DRS Beacon, i.e. the signal that enables automatic activation, has failed. Therefore he had to manually operate the DRS.”
Racing management judges: no punishment for DRS incident
The command stand “had the problem early on the radar, but did not know whether it worked or not,” explains the Viennese. Russell “came to the button once,” said Wolff. However, his protégé “closed again”, which is why the team leader assumes: “It was not a performance situation, so that was an electronic error in Formula 1. I am sure that it won’t be an issue.”
This should keep Wolff right, because in her investigation the racing commissioners find: “The connection between the automated DRS activation system and the car failed due to problems with an external provider. Therefore, the FIA approved manual activation of the DRS in accordance with Article 22.1 h).”
“At this point, the driver had problems with the brake-by-wire system and other electronic systems. He was advised to use an auxiliary button in the cockpit that serves both as a backup radio button and for manual DRS activation,” clarifies the FIA with regard to the breakdown and its consequences: “On the straight between curve 10 and 11, he tried to spark on this button with the team. Drs. “
The judgment also states: “The DRS was opened over a distance of 37 meters on an approximately 700 -meter -long straight. While he won 0.02 seconds, he lost 0.28 seconds in the subsequent curve to compare. This was confirmed by telemetry data. Since a regular violation was given, however, no sporting advantage was decided to improve the stewards so that it was not punished.”
Problem flood: “had to constantly reset systems”
The judgment also coincides with precedent in similar incidents in the past, for example at Fernando Alonso in Budapest 2013 or Sergio Perez in Baku 2018. Russell itself defends itself in relation to the incident: “To be honest, I don’t know exactly how that happened.
In his view, the Brit describes: “As soon as I saw that the DRS opened, I immediately went off the gas – I lost two tenths. It didn’t happen again throughout the race.” Before hearing from the FIA, he reports: “I did not press the DRS button, but another button – and suddenly it was open. But as I said, it was less than a second. I don’t think that I had any advantage, on the contrary.”
Because the sum of the problems already “extremely difficult” and his race “impaired”, according to the 27-year-old: “The steering wheel did not work properly, I lost all the data, and the brake pedal got into an error. I had to constantly reset systems, sometimes the brakes worked normally, then suddenly not being honest, I was quite relieved when I saw the target flag”, ” Breathe Russell.
Russell: Mercedes still not a title candidate
The conclusion of the conclusion of the pure performance of his Mercedes was positive: “We would not have expected to be so close to McLaren. The first series of starting series in qualifying was a big surprise. When I saw Lando directly behind me, I thought:” It flies past me right away. “
But it is known to be different, although Russell also benefits from a five-second penalty against Norris for his wrong starting position-the joy does not reduce it: “The fact that I could keep Lando behind me really made me happy.”
Alone: Despite the third podium in the fourth race, Russell does not see himself as a serious title candidate: “I would like to say it, but to be honest, I don’t think we are. McLaren is currently just too dominant. I think that in Bahrain was probably her strongest performance – and what we saw in China and Suza was probably already a victory from these two races brought. “
Russell therefore only wants to look at himself and his own team: “We just have to continue to score, take opportunities. This weekend we took the chance and took second place – in Melbourne it was third in Melbourne. I don’t think it will go on for many races – but let’s see what’s going on.”