Apr.18 (GMM) George Russell has taken a swipe at Formula 1 pacesetters McLaren, as he insists the Woking based team should cruise to the 2025 world championships.
On paper, the Mercedes driver is a title contender – just 14 points off Lando Norris’ lead. However, Russell thinks the championship leader should be further ahead.
“I’d like to say it’s doable,” Russell said when asked about his title chances, “but you’ve seen that McLaren in the hands of the right driver does a good job. They’re head and shoulders above the rest.”
‘The right driver’ is a clear swipe at Norris, who underperformed in Bahrain to finish just third – behind not only winner Oscar Piastri but also Russell.
“We (Mercedes) are in a position where we are 60 points behind them in the championship, probably because of their mistakes rather than pure performance,” Russell said in Saudi Arabia.
“You could say that (McLaren) car could have finished first and second in every race so far this year.”
Russell, however, thinks McLaren might suffer a performance dip in Barcelona – when the FIA will clamp down further on the sort of wing flexing that is most prominent on the Papaya-coloured car.
“That’s clearly where McLaren have excelled,” Russell said. “So until that race I don’t see the order really shifting. That will be a decisive weekend to see if they take a step back and the teams come closer together.”
But McLaren boss Andrea Stella hit back at that line of thinking, insisting teams without excessively bendy wings are not necessarily slower.
“If you decide to do what we are doing within the regulations, your performance actually becomes a trade-off,” said the Italian. “There are benefits to what Red Bull do and they work very hard at it.”
Apart from McLaren’s dominance, Norris’ current situation is a hot topic in the Jeddah paddock. Commenting from a distance, former F1 team owner Giancarlo Minardi contrasted Piastri’s transition to “a complete driver”.
“For me, he is the first contender for the title, considering Norris’ mental difficulties,” he said.
Piastri welcomes his growing reputation for mental strength. “I also think that’s one of my strong points – and staying calm in critical situations,” said the Australian.
“I hope it’s not the only one,” he laughed.
In contrast, Norris admits he struggled in the few days since Bahrain. “I needed a couple of days off to recharge,” said the Briton, “and I wouldn’t mind a few more days off now.
“I know I am sometimes too hard on myself,” Norris added. “95 percent of the time it’s positive and makes me who I am. But I admit there have been times when I have said too much negative stuff and it has stuck in my head.”
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