George Russell reveals the T14 mistake that cost him pole position in Hungary

George Russell's mistake at Turn 14 in qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix could lead punters to consider betting on him finishing lower than expected, as he may struggle to challenge the frontrunners based on his untimely error.

George Russell will line up fourth on the grid for the Hungarian Grand Prix, but the Mercedes driver felt pole position was on the table. That is, until he made a critical error in Turn 14 that cost him three-tenths of a second and saw him have to settle for the second row of the grid.

Mercedes driver George Russell is convinced that pole position was on the table in qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix, had it not been for a mistake at Turn 14 in Q3.

It was overall something of a strange qualifying session; as a storm system neared the circuit between the end of Q2 and the start of Q3, weather conditions dramatically changed. Track temperatures took a rapid drop, while the wind got gustier and changed direction. Exactly one driver was able to improve his lap time in Q3 compared to his time in Q2: polesitter Charles Leclerc.

But Russell believes that, had it not been for an error, he would be leading the field to green instead of starting back in fourth.

“Q3 was a messy session,” Leclerc told media, including PlanetF1.com, after qualifying. “We took the smallest step backwards from Q2; I was only a tenth slower than Q2. Charles [Leclerc] was two-tenths slower, Fernando [Alonso] was two-tenths slower, McLaren was six-tenths slower.

“I’m not getting carried away with that Q3 performance, because for the rest of the weekend, it hasn’t been straightforward. Of course, Kimi was also out in Q2, and it’s not been plain sailing.”

Asked if it was his error at Turn 14 that cost him his shot at pole position, Russell said yes. On his flying lap, the changing gusts of wind caught him out at that exact place, which he claims cost him three-tenths of a second — or the gap between himself and pole position.

“The wind had shifted a lot. The wind was gustier,” Russell explained of his lap. “That corner was very different compared to Q2, but I should have reacted, like I know the wind was different, and I just had much less downforce in this corner.

“But that’s the reality. I should have reacted, and that’s what cost me today.”

However, Russell also acknowledged that he’s likely not the only driver ruing a Q3 error, saying, “But you speak with every driver, they’ll give you a reason why they missed pole, because no one did their personal best in Q3.”

This weekend is significant for the Mercedes outfit as it represents a change of direction in terms of performance upgrades. The team introduced new suspension in Barcelona, and after Spa, Mercedes opted to revert back to the old settings.

“Formula 1 is so complex, because even if you have the exact same car, one circuit you’re quick, one circuit you’re slow,” Russell said of the testing process. “There are different reasons why this is, and you sometimes need to give an upgrade a real test on different types of circuits, different types of conditions, to categorically say, ‘This is why we are good’, or ‘this is why we are bad’.

“Barcelona, Imola, they’re all very hot race weekends. We believe that was our root cause, and it still is a big factor of our limitation, but clearly in Spa, we were very underwhelming, and clearly the suspension was not an upgrade.”

The step backwards has ultimately left him wanting more, though he recognizes that, at the very least, Hungary still appears to be a step in the right direction.

“It’s definitely been a bit challenging recently. I haven’t felt awfully confident in the car recently,” he admitted. “Of course, today P4, so back in our normal position.

“But yeah, the fact is, McLaren underperformed in Q3. All weekend, bar that session, they were seven-tenths ahead of everyone, four-tenths ahead of everyone.

“So they’re gonna still be the runaway force.”

Mercedes driver George Russell felt pole position for the Hungarian Grand Prix was in his grasp. Then he made an error at Turn 14.

Planet F1