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Formula One driver George Russell finishes fifth in the United States Grand Prix




George Russell had a disappointing 100th Formula One Grand Prix of his career despite improvements to his Mercedes car.

Russell once again failed to reach the podium and was consistently behind his team-mate Lewis Hamilton on track all weekend at the United States Grand Prix.

Mercedes brought upgrades to Austin in the form of a new floor, however, limited practice time on Friday meant Russell was unable to maximise the potential of his new package.

George Russell at the 2023 United States Grand Prix. Photo: Jiri Krenek
George Russell at the 2023 United States Grand Prix. Photo: Jiri Krenek

Going into qualifying, Russell's first attempt put him third but, as other drivers did their flying laps, the driver from Tydd St Giles plummeted down the order and scraped through to the second stage in 14th.

Russell then did a series of laps to sneak into the final stage in ninth but, in doing this, he used multiple sets of tyres which put him at a disadvantage for the rest of the weekend.

In the final stage of qualifying, Russell strung a strong lap together which put him fifth on the grid - outqualifying reigning world champion Max Verstappen.

Russell's lack of tyres cost him dearly in the Sprint Shootout as he did not have the tyre life at the end of the session and thus could only manage to secure a starting position of eighth for Saturday's race.

Russell's fortunes worsened as he impeded Charles Leclerc during the Shootout which earned him a three place grid penalty meaning the Brit started outside the top 10.

Despite this setback, Russell had an impressive opening lap where he made some decent overtakes to return him to eighth place.

The 25-year-old then attempted to overtake McLaren's Oscar Piastri, however, the Australian fought hard and left Russell in a position where he strayed off track - this left him with another penalty.

Russell crossed the line in seventh, however, his five second penalty dropped him to eighth - the last points-paying position in the Sprint.

In the main Grand Prix, Russell started in a prime position on the medium tyre alongside Verstappen, however, a poor start from the Mercedes driver led to him dropping back to eighth.

After emerging unscathed from a stewards investigation into his lap one conduct, Russell then made a move on Alpine's Esteban Ocon for seventh.

Following a flurry of pit stops for Russell's rivals, he moved himself up into third place however this was shortlived as he dropped back to eighth after making his own tyre change.

Russell then regained positions as those ahead made their second stops and driver 63 made it into the top five.

He switched to the medium tyre which dropped him to ninth from which he recovered to seventh on track - finishing 0.3 seconds behind Leclerc in a last-lap battle.

However, it was found after the race that Leclerc and Hamilton's cars were in breach of the technical regulations and they were therefore disqualified promoting Russell into fifth place.

Russell said, "The race start really cost me. It’s disappointing when I definitely felt that there was the potential to fight for a podium. The positive is that the car has improved. We have full focus on 2024 but we also know that the upcoming weekends should suit us more."

The 2023 Formula One season continues this weekend at the Mexico City Grand Prix.



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