George Russell finished the Spanish GP in fifth place, but left Madring with a greater concern regarding the future of the circuit, which was inaugurated last Sunday (13). For the driver, the layout needs to be changed to make the races more interesting and create overtaking opportunities, a complaint echoed by other competitors.
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“I don’t know. They need to do something,” Russell replied. “They need to make a change because every track needs to have an overtaking opportunity after a straight. This one has a tight chicane and the corners. It’s a real challenge, but it’s not pleasant. After 60 laps, hitting those curbs, my head was a bit sore at the end.”
Even before the race, Max Verstappen had already pointed out possible ways to improve the race pace. Asked by the press during the post-qualifying press conference on Saturday about what should be fixed at Madring, the Dutchman replied in a relaxed tone: “Almost all braking zones. Give me a map and I’ll fix it.”
Verstappen also advocated that drivers have more participation in decisions related to circuit design. The four-time world champion stated: “Well, you can always ask, right? You can always ask once: ‘What do you think of this layout?’ I don’t want to go into details, because there are different track designers. Sometimes I talk to one person about circuits. A driver knows very well what a good corner is.”
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Russell agreed with the Red Bull rival’s idea but believes there is a problem within the drivers’ group itself. According to him, tight schedules and the individual interests of competitors make it difficult to expect them to dedicate time to track development.
“Yes, but we are all quite selfish, and no one is willing to dedicate their time,” Russell added. “We have tight schedules, and there are many limitations when you really look at the layout. There’s not really much that can be done,” concluded the Mercedes driver.
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