Russell Slams McLaren F1 Tactics as 'Frustrating' in Qatar

George Russell vents frustration over McLaren’s tactics in the Qatar Sprint, while Hamilton remains in a bad mood after his sixth-place finish.

George Russell finished third in the Qatar Sprint after spending 19 laps trying to take second place from Oscar Piastri. However, the Mercedes F1 driver was unable to attack as he would have liked, with the Australian being aided by Lando Norris’ DRS.

“It was very close at Turn 1 on several occasions! It was frustrating with Lando giving DRS to Oscar. I understand why they did it, but when you want to fight, give it your all, and race for the fans, it’s exasperating! But this third place is important,” said Russell.

The Brit believes he could have finished second but doubts he could have challenged Norris for the win, especially as his own tires were beginning to wear out.

“They lost a bit of performance towards the end, Lando had good pace, Oscar was struggling, and I would have liked to be in a direct battle with Lando to see the pace, but I think he had extra pace, since he was giving DRS to Oscar.”

Lewis Hamilton wasn’t too happy with his sixth-place finish behind the Ferraris.

“I had a good start, had a nice battle with Charles, but that’s it. We know where the car’s issues are, it’s not something that can be fixed with setup changes for me, and we have to live with it until the end of the season.”

“I can’t race the way I want, but we’ll see the qualifying later to at least start a bit higher for the race.”