George Russell suffered an embarrassing Q1 elimination on Saturday at the Hungarian Grand Prix, with the Briton set to start Sunday’s race from 18th.
Russell’s shocking performance in qualifying looked even worse after team-mate Lewis Hamilton claimed pole position at the Hungaroring, to the delight of Mercedes.
Whilst Hamilton’s pole brought the Silver Arrows delight, Russell’s Q1 exit brought them anger.
Team principal Toto Wolff was seen slamming his desk after Russell failed to improve enough his final lap, with the 25-year-old now having a challenging Sunday ahead of him.
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Russell was seemingly unhappy with where Mercedes positioned him on track ahead of his final lap, as the British driver complained over the team radio.
“Guys, was there any point, we were in all that traffic sector three,” Russell stated over the team radio moments after his elimination.
It’s difficult to imagine that Russell claimed his first F1 pole position at the Hungarian GP last season, with things having certainly changed drastically in the space of 12 months.
Russell was clearly disappointed after qualifying with his poor performance, especially as he knew the car was good enough for the front row, as proven by Hamilton.
“I knew how fast the car was and that we would be fighting for a front row spot on the grid,” said Russell
“Lewis of course did a fantastic job. Of course I’m disappointed that we were out because the car was very fast. We were completely screwed on that last lap with the track position. I don’t have much to say about it. We rarely make mistakes like that and today it cost us a lot.”
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Fighting through the field from P18 is set to be a huge challenge for Russell; however, the King’s Lynn-born driver is “optimistic” about his race pace.
“I’m optimistic about that,” Russell added. “But of all the circuits, after Monaco and Singapore, this is the one where overtaking is the biggest challenge.
“It’s not going to be an easy day. But tomorrow is a new day with a lot of opportunities in terms of strategy. We’ll see what we can do.”