Mercedes has confirmed that George Russell will serve an engine penalty between now and the end of the current Formula 1 season, but has not decided when.
The Brit enters next weekend’s Italian Grand Prix 59 points adrift of teammate Andrea Kimi Antonelli, and sits second in the Drivers’ Championship jointly with former stablemate Lewis Hamilton.
Russell signalled a return to form in Zandvoort last week, with Sprint Race success and third in the Grand Prix, behind Antonelli albeit by letting him through as per a Mercedes instruction.
The pre-season title favourite has just under half a season left to overturn the deficit, with the season-ending Qatar and Abu Dhabi Grands Prix still uncertain of being held due to the ongoing Middle Eastern crisis.
Antonelli is already aware of his fate when it comes to the same affliction, with the German marque deciding that his obligatory engine penalty – due to, like Russell, needing to exceed the allowed allocation of four power units – will be taken at his home race at Monza next week.
Russell may wish to avoid the same decision in order to have a better chance of closing the gap, but will also need to be mindful that the following race – Madrid’s debut hosting of the Spanish Grand Prix – will be a trickier track to overcome such a disadvantage, due to its hybrid street profile.
But the Brackley-based squad’s Deputy Team Principal, Bradley Lord, confirmed that it will be ‘when’, not ‘if’.
“We have not finalised where George will take his penalty, but both drivers will be affected,” he told Mercedes’ in-house Nu Silver Arrows Radio Show.
“George retired in Canada, Kimi retired in Barcelona, and George also stopped at the end of qualifying in Hungary. Had that happened in the race, the impact could have been much greater.
“We must manage the remaining events so that both cars reach the end of the season with the freshest and best-performing hardware possible. It is a constant trade-off between the risk of running high-mileage components and the points cost of taking a grid penalty and recovering through the field.”
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