George Russell apologised for an ‘ugly race’ at the Canadian Grand Prix. The Mercedes star snatched the final place on the podium from team-mate Lewis Hamilton during the closing laps but was still frustrated after the chequered flag.
The 26-year-old qualified on pole and was holding off Max Verstappen during the opening stages, but lost out to Lando Norris as the race developed.
Russell also enjoyed his fair share of off-track excursions, running across the kerb in a battle with Norris late on, before taking to the run-off area following wheel-to-wheel contact with Oscar Piastri.
There was some redemption for Russell. His battle with Piastri allowed Hamilton to steam through into P3, but with the lap count ticking down, he made a bold move into the final chicane, restoring himself to the podium-paying positions.
Despite the strong comeback result, Russell was frustrated after the chequered flag. Dialling into the team radio, he said: “Ugly race on my behalf. Sorry for that. I’m very sorry for that.”
After climbing out of the cockpit, Russell continued to express his disappointment. “It felt like a missed opportunity,” he said. “We were really quick on the inters at the beginning, then Lando came through.
“Then we jumped back on the slicks. I made a couple of mistakes out there, pushing the limits and paid the price for it. Nevertheless, first podium of the year. We truly had a fast car this weekend and to be in the mix fighting for victory was really fun. That’s what F1 is about and that’s why we go racing.”
The result was an even more frustrating one for Hamilton, whose previous best finish of the season was P6. The seven-time world champion has struggled in qualifying all year and lost more ground in the Mercedes head-to-head on Sunday.
That said, both Hamilton and Russell can take some comfort from Mercedes‘ major leap forward in terms of performance. The Silver Arrows were right there with Red Bull and Ferrari as the frontrunners at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.