George Russell opens up on the qualifying mistake that impacted Monza grid | F1 Italian GP. George Russell reveals the tire strategy mistake that affected his Monza qualifying.

George Russell will start from fifth on the grid at today’s Monza Grand Prix after Lewis Hamilton’s penalty, but qualifying didn’t go exactly as planned. George Russell and Mercedes took a calculated risk during Monza qualifying. In Q1, both the British driver and Andrea Kimi Antonelli went out on medium tires instead of the usual softs. It was a risky strategy, but it allowed Russell to claim the fastest time in the first session. For Antonelli, however, the mediums did not deliver the expected performance, forcing him to make a second attempt on soft tires.

The team radio and tire confusion

During the final session, a team radio from Russell was broadcast in which he asked his engineers which tires had been fitted for his final Q3 run. The team confirmed they had opted for soft tires, but Russell could not hide his disappointment.

George Russell’s disappointment

After Monza qualifying, George Russell told the media that he regretted the decision to run soft tires. He admitted: “I don’t think they ignored me. I think it was a communication error. I was pretty convinced that the mediums would be better. In Q1, I was obviously the fastest, I felt very good in the car, and then in Q2 I had said that I didn’t like the softs in the same way, so there was a communication error and we need to understand exactly why.” He added: “Who knows what could have happened.”

Despite his starting position, George Russell did not hide his ambition for a podium finish: “I think it will be a difficult race because Charles and the Ferraris are very fast on the straights. Getting past on the first lap will be very important for me. Realistically, we can aim for the podium only if something happens, like last week. We know McLaren are very strong, and Max [Verstappen] is always very strong as well, so it will be tough.”