24 September 2023 , 08:53
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George Russell admitted his Japanese Grand Prix strategy failed and let to the order to allow Lewis Hamilton to pass, but was left to rue another "disaster"
Russell had tried a bold one-stop strategy for the Suzuka race. Everyone else, perhaps sensibly, was banking on at least two visits to the pit lane on a track which is notorious for chewing up tyres.
And it didn't really work out for the Brit. He was running fifth on the road in the final stages but on very old tyres and with Hamilton and Carlos Sainz close behind.
Wary that Sainz might be able to get past both, Mercedes ordered Russell to let his team-mate through. He complained over the radio but eventually complied with the instruction.
He was passed almost immediately afterward by Sainz, but the Spaniard could not get the seven-time world champion. So Hamilton finished fifth with Russell seventh.
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Even though he had reacted in a frustrated manner at the time, Russell admitted afterwards that it was probably the right call. "It was definitely worth a punt," he said, reflecting on that bold tyre strategy gamble.
"The three-stop was closer, or faster, than the one-stop was. But the one-stop gave us a chance to be in P3 if there was a safety car or a red flag. Ultimately, we did have a shot but the end result was a fair representation.
"When you're in the car, 48 laps in, giving it everything, trying to make a suboptimal strategy work, that radio is a tool to release frustration. Overtaking was difficult, you saw [Oscar] Piastri with much fresher tyres, he didn't fly by, it took him two laps and he only just achieved it. It's easy in hindsight."
Hamilton is now only 33 points adrift of second place in the drivers' championship after Sergio Perez failed to score points at Suzuka. Russell is down to joint-seventh now, level on points with Lando Norris after the McLaren driver secured another podium finish.
He added: "My goal now is to achieve P2 for the team in the constructors'. On my personal side, the drivers' is out of the window, it's been a disaster of a season. So many missed chances."