Russell says processional F1 ‘now just a race to Turn 1’

George Russell didn’t hold back after enduring a frustrating US Grand Prix with Mercedes, lamenting what he sees as Formula 1’s biggest modern flaw – a sport where the outcome is largely decided before the first corner.

After slipping from fourth to sixth at the start of last Sunday’s race at the Circuit of the Americas and staying there until the chequered flag, Russell declared that actual racing has become all but extinct in today’s F1.

It’s a view likely to stir debate, given how fiercely contested this season has been and how close the margins are between teams, and yet the Briton’s observation isn’t without merit.

“I made a good start off the line but Max covered Lando,” Russell told Formula 1’s official channel. “I expected Lando to go to the outside to defend from Charles and he didn’t, but I just got stuck behind him and overtaken by Lewis and Oscar so that was really frustrating.”

Just a Race to Turn 1

Once the lights went out, Russell’s race effectively ended at the opening corner – and he’s not alone in feeling that overtaking has become mission impossible.

“Right now in F1 it’s a race to turn one,” he said bluntly. “There’s no tyre degradation. There are only three tenths between the quickest car and the slowest car in the top six and normally you need at least half a second [advantage] to overtake.

“So if I came out of turn one in P3, I’d have been on the podium today, but instead I came in P6 and I finished P6.”

Russell’s verdict cuts deep – not just at his own misfortune, but at the very structure of modern Formula 1. The narrow performance spread, rock-solid tyres, and clean-air dependency have combined to make races feel like extended parades, with qualifying and the first-lap jostle doing all the heavy lifting.

An Unfortunate Procession

Russell’s frustration was only compounded when he compared Sunday’s gridlock to Saturday’s sprint, where he finished second after a more dynamic outing. The contrast, he said, only underlines how little room there is to recover in the main event.

“Ferrari qualified ninth and 10th in the sprint race,” he noted. “If that was the main race, there might have been a lot of points to us, they might have had a bad weekend. As I said, it’s such fine margins.

“If I was 20 milliseconds quicker in qualifying yesterday, I’d have been on the front row and probably on course to finish second in the race. Qualifying is massive, Turn 1 is massive and I don’t even remember the last two-stop race in F1 now. It’s just quite processional, unfortunately.”

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For a driver who won brilliantly in Singapore just weeks ago, the contrast is sharp – from triumph to tedium. And while Mercedes’ form has fluctuated, Russell insists that the outcome of every race is now largely predetermined by one lap and one corner.

Still, the Brit hasn’t written off his team’s season. He believes Qatar and Las Vegas offer realistic chances for redemption – provided Mercedes nails qualifying.

“I think Qatar and Vegas realistically are our two best shots,” Russell said. “But again, it all just comes down to the lap in qualifying.

“If you do a really strong lap and you’re on the front row, you can hold the position and if you don’t… it’s going to be the same in Mexico, it is going to come down to Q3 and the race start.”

As F1 heads into the final stretch, Russell’s words ring louder than mere post-race frustration.

They echo a growing sentiment in the paddock – that the world’s fastest sport has become too perfect, too clean, and too predictable. And for racers like Russell, who thrive on the fight, that’s the ultimate irony.

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