For George Russell, Saturday’s qualifying session for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix was a bittersweet affair – a third-place finish that felt like a triumph, yet was tinged with regret.
As he reflected on his performance, the Mercedes driver couldn’t shake the feeling that a conservative approach to his final Q3 lap, coupled with a strategic oversight, had cost him a shot at pole.
The Q3 top-10 shootout was thrown into chaos when McLaren’s Lando Norris crashed at Turn 4 early in the session, triggering a red flag. The disruption compressed the timeframe for setting grid-defining laps and reshuffled the battle for pole.
With Norris sidelined, only his teammate Oscar Piastri remained a serious threat, having posted a time before the stoppage.
But Max Verstappen unexpectedly seized the moment, employing a bold two-lap strategy that saw him bank a provisional time before switching tyres for a record-breaking flyer.
Russell Envious of Verstappen Strategic Choice
Russell, who finished just over a tenth behind Verstappen in third, watched the Dutchman’s approach with a mix of admiration and hindsight.
“I have a little bit of mixed feelings right now because I felt there was a bit more on the table,” he told select media.
The two-lap plan – with just a brief stop to swap tyres – which allowed Verstappen to ease into his rhythm and remove pressure, was a masterstroke Russell wished he’d considered.
“I think the run plan that Max did for two laps was a really good one and one we didn’t really consider,” he admitted. “Just having that lap on the board takes the pressure off.
©McLaren
“When you go into Turn 1, you’ve got to really send it and you’re braking at 75 metres. When you’ve got no lap on the board, it’s like I’ve got no bailout here. I’m P10 if I make the smallest of mistakes.”
The decision to stick with a single-lap strategy wasn’t for lack of discussion, but Russell was focused on driving, not strategizing.
“Deliberating whether to run two laps was surely discussed on the pit wall, but I’m not privy to every single conversation because I’m just driving the car ultimately at that point and I put my trust in the team,” he explained.
In the heat of the moment, Mercedes opted for a conventional approach, leaving Russell to deliver under intense pressure.
“There was a lot of pressure going into that last lap because Oscar had a lap on the board,” he said, underscoring the stakes.
A Conservative Call Costs Time
Beyond the strategic choice, Russell pinpointed another misstep that hampered his bid for pole: his tyre preparation.
Fearful of a costly error at the treacherous Turn 1, he took a cautious approach to warming his tyres, prioritizing grip over outright pace.
“I went quite conservative on my out lap with my tyres because it was my one and only lap and I had no bank on the board,” he told Sky Sports F1.
“I just felt that if I made a small mistake at turn one or a lock-up I’d have been down in P10 and usually your last lap in Q3 you’re fully, fully sending it.”
The decision backfired in the final sector, where tyre temperatures became a limiting factor.
“So I thought ‘you know what I need to go a bit hotter with my tyres’ just to ensure there’s no mistakes at turn one, and it cost me my last sector,” Russell explained.
“I lost a tenth and a half on myself in the last sector but the lap otherwise was great.”
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That critical loss of time in the closing corners left him agonizingly close to pole, with Verstappen’s masterful lap and Piastri’s strong effort edging him out.
Despite the what-ifs, Russell found solace in his P3 result. “P3 is much better than I thought,” he said, offering praise to his rivals.
“To be so close to Oscar, again, congrats to Max. He did a great job. It’s going to be interesting tomorrow.”
As he walked away from the Jeddah paddock, Russell’s mind lingered on the time left on the table – a reminder of the fine margins in Formula 1 and a lesson for the race ahead.
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