Günther Steiner: George Russell was absolutely right

      Guenther Steiner, the former Haas team principal, spoke in defense of George Russell, who during the Mexican Grand Prix was clearly out of sorts and not only didn’t hide it, but even spoke to his engineer over the radio in raised tones.

      The British Mercedes driver was bewildered that the stewards ignored the actions of Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen at the start, when both, in the confusion of the opening seconds of the Grand Prix, cut corners while retaining their positions but were not penalized. Russell, meanwhile, drove that section of the first lap cleanly, not exceeding the track limits, yet as a result found himself at a disadvantage.

      At a later stage of the race George asked Mercedes to use team tactics and allow him to pass Kimi Antonelli, as he believed he could drive faster than his teammate. Mercedes made that decision only after several laps, during which the debate between Russell and the pit wall continued and his remarks became increasingly emotional.

      When the Mercedes drivers finally swapped positions, he couldn't make use of the gained advantage and toward the end of the race was forced to let his 19‑year‑old teammate through, because he had promised to give the position back if he couldn't overtake Oliver Bearman, who was running fourth. In the end Russell finished sixth.

      Steiner took part in the Red Flags podcast, and he was asked whether he believed that what happened during that race were the first signs of a brewing problem at Mercedes.

      "No, there are no such signs here," the Italian replied. "I mean, what else was George supposed to do? Actually, in my view he was absolutely right. He said that while he was trying to pass his teammate his tyres wore out and lost effectiveness.

      What happened there looked pretty obvious from the outside, but I don't think Russell is losing faith in the team. He said what he wanted to do, but he wasn't allowed, and then he decided: OK, I'll do what the team needs, and if they're not going to do anything to finish the season second in the Constructors' Championship, what can I do?

      George has nothing to reproach himself with; he warned that he couldn't guarantee he'd be able to overtake those ahead. He only made it clear that he could go faster. And then it turned out he wasn't faster anymore, because if you spend five laps trying to pass your teammate, your brakes and tyres will already be worn."