George Russell acknowledged a significant shift in the balance of power in Formula 1 this weekend in Miami. The Mercedes driver admitted surprise at the performance leap shown by McLaren and Ferrari in the Sprint qualifying.
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The result indicates a possible turnaround in the season’s landscape, after Mercedes’ initial dominance in the early stages. With more competitive rivals, the German team now faces greater pressure already this weekend.
In Friday’s session, Lando Norris secured pole for the Sprint race, while Kimi Antonelli, Russell’s teammate, finished second. Oscar Piastri and Charles Leclerc completed the top four, with Max Verstappen in fifth, leaving Russell only in sixth position, 0.624s off the best time.
“It’s quite surprising the size of the leap McLaren and Ferrari have made, that’s really impressive. We knew they would close in, but they were faster than us,” Russell said after the session. Both teams brought significant upgrade packages to Miami, while Mercedes followed a more conservative development plan.
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The Briton also pointed out his own difficulties during the session, especially with tire overheating in the tighter section of the circuit: “I was struggling quite a bit today, it’s not a track I like, especially in these hotter conditions. I was overheating the tires a lot and couldn’t find the ideal balance,” he added.
Even starting further back in the Sprint race, Russell does not rule out a recovery: “I’m not in a great starting position, but we’ve seen more eventful races like in China, so there’s a chance. I want to make a good start and see what we can do,” he concluded.
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