George Russell, driving for Mercedes, was left seething at himself after a costly mistake following his pit stop thwarted what he believed was a “guaranteed podium” in the Monaco Grand Prix.
Russell had been aiming to make his way through the pack, and the arrival of rain at Monte Carlo seemed to present the perfect opportunity for positions to shuffle. Taking advantage of the conditions, Russell opted to pit and reemerged ahead of Esteban Ocon of Alpine at the time.
However, shortly afterward, Russell made an error by running wide at Mirabeau, which he referred to as a “small mistake.” As a consequence, he was handed a five-second penalty for rejoining the track unsafely after colliding with Sergio Perez and reversing back onto the circuit.
Although Russell had enough of a gap ahead of Charles Leclerc to retain his fifth-place position and cross the finish line, he was deeply disappointed not to secure a podium finish in Monaco.
Speaking to F1 TV after the race, Russell expressed his frustration, saying, “I’m kicking myself, to be honest. One small mistake cost us a podium. I came out of the pits comfortably ahead of Ocon and Lewis [Hamilton]. There was a yellow flag at Turn 5, I backed off, and as soon as I pressed the brakes, I locked up and followed the yellow flag. I think it’s almost a lesson that when you’re not focused or not on it, that’s sometimes when mistakes happen. I probably wouldn’t have made that mistake if there wasn’t a yellow flag there. Really, really disappointed because after that pit stop, it was basically a guaranteed podium.”
The race was significantly affected by changing weather conditions, with rain initially impacting only three corners of the circuit before becoming more widespread later on. Russell’s frustration was evident as he was unable to capitalize on the conditions that typically level the playing field in Formula 1 to some extent.
Reflecting on the challenging conditions, Russell reasoned, “It definitely wasn’t the easiest conditions, but they’re conditions where I feel like we can maximize the opportunities. Normally, as a driver, if you do a better job than the rest, you can pick up the pieces, and we were on course for that until we weren’t—until I wasn’t with my mistake. So, I don’t really know what more to say.”
Despite the disappointment in Monaco, George Russell remains a highly talented driver, and fans eagerly anticipate his future performances, hoping for more opportunities for podium finishes as the season progresses.
