The Chinese Grand Prix weekend is highly anticipated across the paddock to determine whether McLaren’s dominance in Australia over the rest of the grid is as significant as it appeared in Melbourne. If the Shanghai circuit confirms this outcome, predictions of one of the most competitive F1 seasons ever could turn into a McLaren MCL39 monologue, with Norris and Piastri battling each other for the championship.
Among those concerned about such a scenario is Mercedes driver George Russell. In 2023, the Briton accurately predicted Red Bull’s dominance after the first Grand Prix. In Australia, George Russell suggested that Woking’s team could already halt development on their 2025 car and focus on the one built under the new regulations. Speaking to journalists in China, the #63 doubled down, claiming that McLaren’s current advantage over its competitors is greater than Red Bull’s was two years ago.
“I think their car is definitely capable of winning every race,” George Russell said. However, he does not believe that the reigning Constructors’ champion will always be able to impose its superiority: “Their car can win them all, but in the end, I don’t think that will happen. We have to see. The gap they have this year over everyone is bigger than Red Bull ever had. But when Max was in that car [2023], he was reliable in every single lap he did in Q3; he never had issues.”
“We hope to be there to capitalize, as we did in the Melbourne weekend,” concluded the 27-year-old from King’s Lynn, “since, in theory, that race should have already been a one-two for them [McLaren].”
Finally, George Russell added that he believes Red Bull’s advantage in 2023 was “three or four tenths, [whereas] McLaren’s advantage right now is definitely greater.”
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