How Monaco "nightmare" was a step back in time for Russell
How Monaco "nightmare" was a step back in time for Russell
George Russell endured what he has described as a "nightmare" of a Monaco Grand Prix that proved to be a step back in time for the Williams driver.
Russell finished 14th ahead of team-mate Nicholas Latifi, Yuki Tsunoda, whose AlphaTauri team attempted a strategic gamble that failed to pay off, and the two Haas cars of Nikita Mazepin and Mick Schumacher.
The Briton has revealed a degree of empathy for Mazepin and Schumacher who were lapped three times apiece, reminding him of Williams' performance in 2019.
On dealing with blue flags around the twisting street circuit, Russell explained: "It is incredibly difficult.
"When you back off you lose all tyre temperature and you have no grip so it is a bit of a nightmare.
"Out of all the places, this is the worst to have a bad car and a slow one so it was tough for me but I don't envy the Haas guys. That was us two years ago."
As for Williams' performance on this occasion, Russell added: "I would say [it went] as we expected really.
"We know we have quite a sensitive car and that doesn't necessarily induce a huge amount of confidence and confidence is everything around a track like this.
"It was a pretty dull race overall and from my side it was nothing too spectacular. It was just a race on my own, looking in my mirrors for the blue flags. We go to the next one."
Ricciardo and Alonso a hindrance
Despite Williams' struggles, Russell spent most of the start of the race mixing with Daniel Ricciardo's McLaren and the Alpine of Fernando Alonso.
Russell suggested, however, this actually hindered his progress as time went on.
"The first stint was really difficult," added Russell. "I was stuck behind Ricciardo and Alonso.
"They were really struggling for pace for whatever reason and as a consequence, I damaged the tyres a lot which made me pit early and then I came back out into traffic.
"That was sort of a knock-on effect. We showed signs of a strong pace when we came out of the pits on the hard tyres.
"But as soon as we got the blue flags, you lose the tyre temperature and there is not much we can do. Nothing too interesting, we finished where we expected."
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
Suspended Red Bull employee 'grilled' as Horner saga given potential END DATE
- 50 minutes ago
BLOW for former F1 champion as Mercedes preferences revealed
- 1 hour ago
F1 boss HITS BACK at star driver over schedule complaints
- 2 hours ago
F1 2025 Driver Lineup: Big names on the move as half the grid reshuffles for next season
- 3 hours ago
F1 champion claims Drive to Survive success was 'very lucky'
- Today 13:59
F1 franchise welcomes return of INCREDIBLE feature
- Today 12:59
Related news
F1 champion claims team may WRITE OFF Chinese GP sprint race
Schumacher fires scary message at F1 team boss as worst fears CONFIRMED
FIA slammed for 'ridiculous' Russell investigation
F1 team hire former Man Utd and Chelsea supremo
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Oliver Bearman
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- Grand Prix du Canada 2024
- Gran Premio de España 2024
- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2024
- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2024
- Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2024
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
- Qatar Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2024
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860