George Russell has defended the mistakes he made at the Canadian Grand Prix, highlighting that he is making more mistakes because he is “trying” harder than when he first arrived at Mercedes.
The 26-year-old was in contention for victory in the Montreal race, having started from pole, but a couple of moments cost him time and track position, including falling behind Lando Norris, who finished second behind Max Verstappen.
After pitting during the last safety car to change tyres, he had to fight to overtake the McLaren of Oscar Piastri and his teammate Lewis Hamilton, whom he completed a daring overtake to take third place and his first trip to the podium this year. anus. season.
The former grand prix winner defended his approach, stressing that without pushing for an extra lap time he would not have been in a position to challenge for victory anyway.
“I could easily have made none of those mistakes if I had lowered the risk control and driven a tenth (of a second) slower lap map for 70 laps,” he told media, including RacingNews365. “But if I drove a tenth of a lap slower for 70 laps, I probably wouldn’t be in that position in the first place.”
“In 2022, I don’t think I’m trying as hard as I am now. And I didn’t really make any mistakes all season. Now I’m trying really, really hard because I want to get that win for the team.”
Russell would reduce risk taking in championship fight
While the change in focus shows Russell has a different mindset than when he first joined Mercedes, it also underlines his development as a driver.
He was widely criticized for his mistakes in Montreal, including by this author, but the British driver was quick to point out that he would not have taken unnecessary risks if he were in the fight for the drivers’ title, as well as acknowledging that he pushed too hard. a lot.
“If I was fighting for a championship, I probably wouldn’t push myself and risk as much during these races,” he said.
“But right now we are not fighting for the championship. We had half a chance to win (at the Canadian Grand Prix), and I did everything to achieve it, probably too far.”
