George Russell gives Mercedes issue update and admits Lewis Hamilton fear | F1 | Sport

George Russell is confident the engine problems that have blighted his last two race weekends have finally been resolved. And in the nick of time, too, given he expects Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari to be more of a threat to Mercedes than ever at the Hungaroring on Sunday.

Russell‘s race at Spa-Francorchamps last weekend lasted barely 30 seconds before he was punted into the gravel by Hamilton on lap one, while team-mate and title rival Kimi Antonelli won. He raged on the radio that it was “f*****g unacceptable”, but his ire was directed at his Mercedes engine rather than his former team-mate.

Though the data collected from that incident has at least helped the team to finally identify the gremlin that was limiting his battery recharging and top speed. Asked yesterday if it has now been fixed, Russell replied: “We believe so. Kimi took a new PU in Austria, so there will be differences, but that will come back in my favour at one point. That’s just the norm.

“But the main calibration issues that we saw, we hope and we’re pretty confident should be fixed here. And it’s a huge load off my mind. I was thinking about how I needed to drive to make the power unit fast in the straight and how I pick up the throttle, the gear usage, how early I am before throttle.

“I am looking forward now to just going into a weekend where I can just try and focus on driving fast, focus on the simple things. I know that is when I perform at my best. But we are not in a simplistic sport. So saying, ‘Let’s just solely focus on the simple things’, is easier said than done sometimes.”

Russell’s scoreless Sunday at Spa saw hum slip back to 50 points behind championship leader Antonelli. Hamilton currently splits them, five points better off than his former Mercedes team-mate. Charles Leclerc was second in Belgium and won the British Grand Prix on circuits that weren’t expected to suit the Ferraris.

And so the Scuderia are tipped to be especially strong on a tighter and twistier Hungary track. Russell said: “It’s a circuit I like, but it’s going to be a real challenging weekend. We know it’s one of the least power-sensitive circuits of the season.

“We’ve got Ferrari close behind. They have a better chassis than power unit at the moment so, of all of the circuits, you can expect them to be competitive here. And, of course, Kimi is performing super well every single race weekend. So it’s not going to be a straightforward weekend, but I’m excited for it.”

Whatever happens on Sunday, Antonelli will head into the summer break at the top of the pile. It’s a remarkable achievement for the Italian, who turns 20 in August – Sebastian Vettel remains F1’s youngest champion at 23 years and 134 days when he took the 2010 title.

Antonelli said: “I wouldn’t say I’ve been the best driver on the grid, but I think we were the ones doing the fewest mistakes. And I think what brought us here now allowed us to get good results. What I can be happy about going into the summer break, execution-wise, together with the team, we’ve done an incredible job. And that allowed us to put ourselves in this position.”