George Russell believes Max Verstappen disrupted Mercedes’ carefully planned slipstream strategy during Italian Grand Prix qualifying at Monza, contributing to the British driver missing pole position by just 0.060 seconds to Pierre Gasly. The latest incident added another chapter to the frequently tense relationship between George Russell and Max Verstappen, even if this confrontation was less dramatic than some of their previous encounters.
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff also pointed to Max Verstappen’s actions as a key reason why George Russell was unable to make the most of his final Q3 attempt. Mercedes had planned for Andrea Kimi Antonelli to provide his team-mate with a tow, but the sequence unravelled as the cars approached Parabolica.
How Max Verstappen disrupted Mercedes’ Monza slipstream strategy
As Max Verstappen approached Parabolica before beginning his final flying lap, he realised there was no car ahead from which he could gain a slipstream. The Red Bull driver therefore slowed considerably, apparently hoping that Andrea Kimi Antonelli would pass him and become the lead car.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli, however, was effectively playing a supporting role for George Russell at that stage of qualifying. Mercedes wanted the Italian to position himself ahead of his team-mate and provide the ideal tow for the decisive Q3 lap.
Recognising what Max Verstappen was trying to achieve, Andrea Kimi Antonelli chose not to overtake the Red Bull because doing so would have given Max Verstappen the slipstream he wanted. The problem was that this also destroyed the carefully calculated gaps between Andrea Kimi Antonelli and George Russell.
The result was a congested run towards the final corner rather than the clean formation Mercedes had planned. With pole position ultimately decided by only six hundredths of a second, the disruption proved particularly costly.
George Russell points to Verstappen after losing pole by 0.060s
Speaking to reporters at Monza after qualifying, George Russell made it clear that Max Verstappen’s actions had created the confusion.
“Everything looked fine,” the Mercedes driver explained. “But then, going into Parabolica, Max slammed on the brakes. He didn’t want to be the lead car. These things happen. You can’t control what other people do.”
George Russell explained that Andrea Kimi Antonelli had already executed the same slipstream strategy successfully earlier in the session, but the presence of Max Verstappen made the final attempt much more complicated.
“Kimi was there to give me the slipstream – which he did perfectly on the first attempt – but obviously with Max ahead I think it was difficult for Kimi as well to understand what to do,” George Russell continued. “So there was a bit of bad luck.”
Russell admits Mercedes may have been better off abandoning the tow
With hindsight, George Russell conceded that Mercedes might have been better off abandoning the slipstream plan altogether once the situation developed.
“In hindsight, we probably would have been better off not trying it, but we wanted to maximise everything and, despite that, second place is a good result. We’re ahead of our rivals and we still have a very good chance of fighting for the win.”
George Russell nevertheless came exceptionally close to pole. Pierre Gasly claimed the top spot for Alpine by just 0.060 seconds, leaving Mercedes to wonder whether a clean final preparation lap and the planned tow from Andrea Kimi Antonelli could have changed the outcome.
The result still leaves George Russell in a strong position for the Italian Grand Prix. But after another qualifying episode involving Max Verstappen, the Mercedes driver will no doubt hope their paths cross less closely once the race begins.
