Formula One driver George Russell finishes on the podium at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

George Russell ended his disappointing 2023 Formula One campaign on a high as he recorded his second podium finish of the season at the final Grand Prix in Abu Dhabi.

Russell's resurgent performance enabled Mercedes to secure second place in the constructors' standings and the additional prize money that goes with it.

The driver – who hails from Tydd St Giles – had an impressive start to the final F1 weekend of the season as he topped two out of the three practice session as his Mercedes car finally showed some pace.

This form then continued into qualifying as Russell easily progressed from the first practice session with a lap time that put him third.

Russell then made it through to the final stage of qualifying - a feat not achieved by his team-mate Lewis Hamilton - where he set a flying lap that put him fourth on the grid between the two McLaren cars.

Starting on the medium tyre alongside Oscar Piastri, Russell lost a place on the opening lap to his former Formula Two rival Lando Norris, however, the 25 year-old soon made his way back into fourth place.

Russell then dived into the pits where a fortuitous slow stop from Norris gave the Mercedes driver a free position as, after other drivers made their tyre changes, he was in the podium places.

As the second stint progressed, Russell extended his lead over Norris and began to make inroads on the gap to Charles Leclerc's Ferrari - Mercedes' main rivals in the constructors' standings.

After the second round of pit stops, Russell remained ahead of Norris and set the fastest lap of the race as he chased down Carlos Sainz and Yuki Tsunoda to regain his podium position.

In the dying moments of the race, Russell came under threat from the rapid Red Bull of Sergio Perez who overtook the Brit with only a handful of laps to go.

Thankfully, the Mexican was carrying a five-second penalty from a prior contact with Norris which, after a tense final lap where Leclerc let Perez through to try and extend the Red Bull driver's lead over Russell, the Mercedes driver ultimately ended up on the podium securing second place for the team.

Despite his stunning final drive, Russell has had a disappointing season overall in which he finished eighth in the drivers' standings - 59 points behind his team-mate.

Russell said: "This result means a huge amount and I’m really pleased we’ve secured second place for the team.

"There are so many people back at the factory in Brackley and Brixworth, who have worked so hard to achieve this.

"It’s been a really challenging season for us. I've let the side down a couple of times this year so I was pleased to bring it across the line.

"It was really intense at the end and so close with Perez, his pace was just great. I thought Charles was going to back me up but respect to him for keeping it clean. I’m happy to end the season this way with a podium."

The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix concluded the season, however, Russell will return for testing in February.