George Russell assumes Mercedes’ risky bet on tires at Silverstone: « We couldn’t play it safe »

George Russell acknowledged that the lack of pace of the Mercedes forced him to take risks with tire strategy during a very lively British Grand Prix.

A risky bet for Mercedes

Among five drivers, with Charles Leclerc, Isack Hadjar, Ollie Bearman, and Gabriel Bortoleto, George Russell opted for slick tires even before the start of the race, hoping that the track would dry quickly. But the gamble proved to be a losing one: the track was still too wet.

Despite this initial setback, the Briton remained in the fight for points, with strategies changing as the stops varied.

He was then one of the first to switch back to slick tires for his last stop, another gamble attempted too early. « It was a 50-50 choice at the start of the 25-minute rain period, » he explained to Sky Sports.

« But we spent 15 minutes behind a Virtual Safety Car. When it restarted, we were driving five seconds faster than those on intermediates, but then the rain came back. In hindsight, it’s easy to say that we took too many risks. »

« For the last pit stop, I probably came in too early. I took too many risks. I didn’t expect to have hard tires. It was a terrible day. It really hurts to go through this at my national Grand Prix », he explains.

« If we had played it safe, we would probably have finished 3rd, 4th, or 5th, which is better than our final result. But that wasn’t what we were aiming for. »

George Russell: « With a fast car, it’s easier to be conservative »

Brilliant in qualifying with a 4th place on the grid, George Russell already knew that Mercedes lacked pace compared to the three top teams.

He believes that it’s easier to play it safe when the car naturally has pace, like at McLaren. « The track is six kilometers long. In some places, it was completely dry, but two corners were drenched, » he explained.

« In those corners, you lose five seconds per lap compared to intermediate tires, but on the rest of the circuit, you gain five seconds. It’s not easy. If you play it safe, you have a sure result. We took a big risk. »

« If there hadn’t been the VSC at the beginning and we had 25 minutes of dry running, maybe all the drivers on slicks would have been in front, and we would have said it was a brilliant decision.

You can’t anticipate a VSC. We had planned for 25 minutes of dry track, and I believe slicks were the right tires. But we only got ten.

« Obviously, I am very disappointed. If you have the pace, you can afford to be conservative because no matter what you do, you stay ahead. If you don’t have it, it’s so tight between the others that to hope for a good result, you have to take risks. Sometimes, staying on track is as courageous as coming in », he concluded.