Formula 1 had an intense battle in the opening laps of the 2026 China GP Sprint, and George Russell revealed he was surprised by Lewis Hamilton’s attack right after the start. The Mercedes driver stated he didn’t expect such an aggressive move from his former teammate in the first corners of the short race.
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Hamilton started from fourth position and had a strong getaway, quickly moving up to second place. Subsequently, the Ferrari driver went after Russell, starting a direct duel for the Sprint lead.
In the opening laps, the two engaged in a busy battle for the lead. Russell managed to regain the lead with an overtake at Turn 14, but Hamilton responded on the following lap by going around the outside of Turn 1 to retake first position.
Despite the initial pressure, Russell managed to regain control of the race and built a gap in the following laps. The Briton managed the race until the checkered flag and secured his first Sprint victory since the 2022 São Paulo GP.
The decisive moment of the race happened after the safety car deployment caused by Nico Hülkenberg stopping on track. Russell managed the restart well and maintained the lead until the end of the race.
Commenting on the battle with Hamilton, Russell highlighted the strategic level of the contest in the early laps. According to the Mercedes driver, the race required care when attacking and defending position.
“It was quite fun in the end. There was a lot of strategy involved and it’s not easy to find the right moment to make an overtake,” the Briton stated.
The Sprint winner also said he hoped the crowd enjoyed the battle. “I hope it was a fun race to watch. Usually Sprints are quite monotonous, but I managed to keep everything under control after the safety car and I was happy with the win.”
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Russell also highlighted the difficult conditions faced at the Shanghai circuit during the race. According to him, the strong wind complicated the driving, especially on a track with long corners.
“It was very windy and it wasn’t easy, because the first corner is very long. Just one lap pushing too hard and you can destroy the front-left tire,” he explained.
According to the Mercedes driver, tire management was a decisive factor throughout the race, especially during the direct battle with Hamilton in the opening laps.
“It was a matter of managing the pace, especially when we were fighting wheel-to-wheel,” Russell said.
The Briton also made sure to praise the performance of his Ferrari rival in the early laps. “Lewis did an incredible job at the start of the race. He caught me by surprise, but he has 20 years of experience,” he stated.
Despite the victory, Russell believes Mercedes still needs to evolve for the main race. According to him, Ferrari showed a competitive race pace, even after being behind in qualifying.
“I hope we can bring more performance. Ferrari seemed a bit behind in qualifying, but very close to us in race pace. So we need to find a bit more performance for the Grand Prix,” he concluded.
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