George Russell got embroiled in a tense radio conversation with his Mercedes race engineer as his frustration boiled over during Formula 1‘s Mexico City Grand Prix.
Russell lined up fourth at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, but he was demoted at the start when Max Verstappen gained a spot despite cutting the first corners.
Having voiced disapproval at Verstappen avoiding a penalty, Russell lost more places when he got caught up in an incident involving the Red Bull and Lewis Hamilton.
Russell’s agitation boiled over when he was urged to manage his tyres behind team-mate Andrea Kimi Antonelli, despite McLaren’s Oscar Piastri being right on his tail.
“Marcus [Dudley, Russell’s race engineer], I’ve got a ****ing car on my ****. A car much quicker than ours,” he emphasised.
“I’m trying to hold position. I’ve got much more pace than Kimi here, and we can fight for a podium. I’m happy to give the position back if we don’t achieve it.”
The Briton doubled down on his stance in the cockpit post-race, citing that his overriding concern was maximising Mercedes’ result amid a tight championship battle.
“Ordinarily, we work as a team and we’re in the fight for P2 of the championship,” Russell, who crossed the line in seventh, told media including Motorsport Week.
“I could see Kimi was struggling to get past them, and I was in his DRS train. So when my tyres were in a good place, I was ready to attack.
“Ultimately, we left it too long, and by that point, there was no need to swap positions. Either do it straight away or not at all.”
Russell has insisted the situation could and should have been handled in an alternative manner, stating that the team will review how things ought to have played out.
“I mean, Marcus is conveying a message. He’s not the one in that position making the decisions. So we need to sit down and talk as a team,” he added.
Russell believes Mercedes missed Mexico podium chance
Despite the verbal tirade over team radio, Russell and Antonelli switched spots on Lap 41, a move Russell believes was “too late” as his tyres had dropped off by then.
Having seen the chance to chase down those ahead slip, Russell was powerless to hold Piastri back as the McLaren got past with a bold lunge into Turn 1 on Lap 60.
“I mean, he was clearly much quicker than us. We didn’t have the pace today,” Russell conceded.
“But I think if I came around the first quarter in P3, we’d have finished P3. That’s the story of the season.”
With four rounds remaining this season, Ferrari and Mercedes are now separated by a single point, with Red Bull closing in behind, 10 points covering all three teams.
“Ultimately, I’m not battling Kimi in a championship or a fight. We’re battling Ferrari and Red Bull for the championship,” he addressed.
“Ultimately, we finished P6 and P7 today. It could have worked out differently.”
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