George Russell received supportive messages from many drivers after his F1 Emilia Romagna GP crash as he rues extra aggression.
While it was not a certainty that Williams’ Russell would have scored in F1 Emilia Romagna GP at Imola, but the Brit was in a good position to do so until his heartbreaking crash behind the safety car, while aggressively trying to raise his tyre temperature.
It was a silly crash in realistic terms, but one that Russell was hugely frustrated from, as quick replays showed him sitting at the side of the F1 circuit, not wanting anyone to come near him when a marshal tried to check on him.
For any driver, these are moments, which can go either way, but Russell hopes this will allow him to understand his limit going forward after the aggressive strategy he adopted at Imola. “I don’t know when I can score, I mean, not making stupid mistakes like I did in Imola would be good,” he said to TV media.
“A race that I was pushing from Lap 1 as hard as I could until then, it’s the most aggressive I have ever been. I wanted to continue that after safety car because I knew that drivers behind me were on the hot new tyres and myself on the old tyres, if I had any chance of getting a point, I needed to be super aggressive.
“As soon as I spun, I was in the wall, obviously it was gutting, so sorry to the guys. The positive is that we were in that position on merit, I managed to jump Ocon, pulled away from him in early phase of the race. I was also at the same pace as the McLarens ahead of me. The car was alive this weekend, it was really-really fast.
“I think we understand it better and better, week in, week out. My first laps have been poor, I made a probably bold and aggressive move on Sebastian in the first corner, which is something we have been trying to work in. Like I said, sometimes, maybe, I have been too conservative in the races but definitely found the limit in Imola,” summed up Russell.
Reflecting on it a day later, Russell tweeted: “Yesterday sucked. But that feeling only makes me more determined to keep pushing, keep improving and keep getting stronger. Know that every one of your messages gives me that same motivation. Thank you for the incredible support, it means a lot.”
Russell was ably supported by some of his F1 rivals, where reigning world champion Lewis Hamilton also left a message of motivation for the Brit. “George, you were giving it your all. It’s ok to make mistakes and it’s ok to feel the pain,” he wrote. “I’ve made more than I can remember. You’re great bud. Keep your head up and keep pushing, on to the next one.”
Likewise, Romain Grosjean added: “Man, I know the feeling. Will take some time to forget it, but what you do is mega. Keep pushing.” While ex-F1 racer David Coulthard also shared his bit, “..small blip in a long career ahead of you in F1. Don’t worry about and keep showing us what you’re made of.”
Apart from the F1 group, Hamilton’s brother Nicolas chipped in with, “..you are only human man! It’s all part of the learning process. Keep doing your thing.” At the same time, Billy Monger stated: “Come back stronger mate. It’ll come.”
Here’s the video of George Russell binning it: https://twitter.com/F1/status/1322953550033489920
Here’s what happened during unlapping when marshal were on-sight for George Russell