George Russell ‘kicking himself’ but expecting Mercedes boost in Spain

Mercedes rolled out a huge slate of upgrades in Monaco, as the team looks to mount a comeback in the new era of regulations.

George Russell believes Mercedes showed it has the potential to be a podium contender after its performance in Monaco, with the W14 have been redesigned ahead of the iconic race.

Speaking in the principality, Russell stated that he had “no real concerns” after driving the revamped W14 around the tight twists and turns of Monte Carlo, hoping it is the start of increasingly impressive performances throughout the season.

Heading to Barcelona, the Mercedes driver believes the team could be set for an even better outing, revealing that there is “definitely more there” after he secured P8 in qualifying.

“Q1 and Q2 were looking reasonably promising, so close to Ferrari and Fernando [Alonso],” he said.

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“I pushed for more and paid the price. Ultimately went slower than the potential.

“Kicking myself a little bit because of that. But I would have been equally disappointed had I just been a tenth behind and not try that little bit extra.

“[It’s the] price you pay sometimes, can’t get it right every time. For sure now a little bit disappointed.”

Mercedes brought a number of changes to their car in Monaco, including a new floor and front suspension changes, as well as a major change of strategy when it comes to their sidepods.

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Ditching their ‘zero sidepod’ concept which has set the apart from the rest of the grid, Mercedes deployed a more conventional approach in Monaco, addressing some of their aerodynamic failures.

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While Mercedes weren’t in the podium battle in Monaco, Russell felt that, on a different track, the team could have been in the fight at the front of the grid, believing that will be visible in Barcelona. 

Finishing the race in P5, Russell finds himself sat in fifth place in the Drivers’ Standings, 19 points behind his teammate and 94 points behind title leader Max Verstappen.

“I see no reason why in Barcelona it won’t perform as we expected and we’ll hopefully make a small jump,” he said.