George Russell has revealed that a steering issue in Q3 denied him the chance to take a second consecutive pole position at the Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix.
The Briton, who won the race 12 months ago from pole, entered Q3 among the favourites again as he topped the opening two segments in treacherous conditions.
But as the rain-soaked Las Vegas Strip dried up, the Mercedes driver’s chances evaporated when a sudden problem with his power steering hampered his final run.
The issue struck seemingly out of nowhere, prompting panic from Russell over the team radio.
“I don’t know what’s happening with this steering; something’s broken on the front. F**k!” he exclaimed.
Meanwhile, his race engineer, Marcus Dudley, suspected damage, which Russell was quick to dispel.
As the issue worsened, he was forced to abandon his flying lap and settle for fourth for the Grand Prix, which he labelled a “shame” amid the potential he had shown.
“I had a steering issue in Q3,” Russell explained to media including Motorsport Week.
“I don’t know what it was. It felt like a power steering problem. On my second lap, I thought I had to stop the car on track because I couldn’t turn properly.
“I was quickest in P3, Q1, and Q2. Then on my second lap, I thought I had to stop the car on track because I couldn’t turn the steering properly.
So I don’t know what it was. I feel fortunate to have qualified P4 considering. But of course, it feels like a missed opportunity.”
Russell admits Las Vegas conditions ‘pretty horrendous’
Heading into the third race weekend at the Las Vegas Strip Circuit, the drivers shared anticipation that the predicted rain would contribute to “not fun” conditions.
Following qualifying, Russell doubled down on that sentiment, citing that the issue he was combating with his Mercedes compounded an already tough session.
“Yeah, pretty horrendous,” he said. “It wasn’t fun at all, but it’s a nice challenge. You don’t want it to be the same every week.”
However, Russell did not agree with many of his peers’ comments about this being the toughest conditions.
The 27-year-old pointed to the 2020 Turkish Grand Prix, where drivers ran Intermediate tyres until they were effectively slicks.
“I think that’s probably the drivers who haven’t driven in Turkey in 2020,” he claimed.
“Everybody knew it was going to be challenging. No tyres are designed for this type of circuit.”
When asked whether there was a solution to improve racing conditions, Russell outlined that the lack of grip around Vegas has nothing to do with Pirelli’s compounds.
“I do think the job for Pirelli would be a lot easier if all the tarmacs were consistent,” Russell said.
“There’s already enough variables with temperature, with circuit layout, with altitude, with downforce levels, tyre compounds.
“So then having another variable of the tarmac just seems a little bit unnecessary.”
READ MORE – George Russell lists Mercedes’ main threat at F1 Las Vegas GP
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