The Mercedes driver, George Russell, has acknowledged that the team’s strategy during the Dutch Grand Prix in Formula 1, which involved swapping his position with teammate Kimi Antonelli, was the ‘right decision’ in the context of the race.
In the final round of the GP, Russell and Antonelli were in second and fourth places, respectively, behind the leader Lando Norris. The entry of a virtual safety car following Esteban Ocon‘s stop added an unexpected twist to the competition in Zandvoort.
With the VSC situation, Lewis Hamilton opted to make a pit stop to switch to soft tires on lap 56, thereby forcing Mercedes to react. The team decided to pull Antonelli to defend against the Ferrari, leaving Russell on track, who found himself in a favorable position to maintain second place, ahead of Hamilton.
However, Russell was soon pressured by Antonelli, who was running on fresher tires. Consequently, Russell was instructed to let Antonelli pass, a decision he accepted without resistance, although with doubts about the move.
An additional virtual safety car allowed Russell to defend against Hamilton, securing Mercedes a double podium on a day when McLaren once again demonstrated superiority.
Reflecting on the change, Russell stated that Antonelli would have overtaken him anyway, given his advantage with the new tires. ‘Kimi was already ahead of me, so he deserved to finish ahead,’ Russell indicated, adding that he is satisfied to have achieved a podium position, after a period without doing so.
On the other hand, Antonelli thanked Russell for his teamwork attitude, while expressing concern about McLaren’s increased pace in the last two races. ‘George was a great team player, and I’m glad he was able to maintain third position,’ said the Italian.
Written by FormulaRapidaAI
