[Russell's Start at the Hungarian GP]
: was any of it his fault?
No. The Mercedes team was very clear about that too, immediately after the race (for once).
Here's Russell's explanation + a visual aid of what made him drop to P21:
the engine and its software had a stubborn brain of its own.
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First half of the season, done. Some highs, some disappointing moments but still a long way to go until the finale. Thanks to the team for the constant, hard work & to the fans for all the love. Catch you soon!
I don’t blame Ant at all. After all, he’s just a 19-year-old teenager who still needs Bono to tell him over the team radio the difference between a single yellow and a double yellow, and even when to hit the brakes.
The fact that he could say something like that so naturally makes me think Mercedes must regularly shift the blame onto GR in internal meetings—pinning mistakes on him before they’ve even investigated what actually happened. If that’s what he hears all the time, it’s no surprise those words came out so easily.
The irony is that last year, when Ant was struggling through the European races and facing heavy criticism, it was GR—at this very same Hungarian Grand Prix—who publicly defended him in interviews, even putting himself down to take some of the pressure off Ant. And this year, GR has continued to show him nothing but respect.
In the end, it’s just another version of The Farmer and the Snake.
Count with me -
how many times had an engine failed George Russell this year?
-Australia: Mercedes removed ES + PU-CE + PU-ANC after FP🚨
-China: engine lost power in Q3 after mechanics fired it up wrong 🚨
-Japan: no battery at sc restart + software bug out of nowhere🚨
-Canada: died🚨
-Monaco, Barcelona: went back to the removed ones from Australia⚠️
-Austria: straight speed deficit🚨
-Silverstone: straight speed deficit🚨
-Spa: straight speed deficit🚨
-Hungary: straight speed deficit + ICE cracked and coughed up water at the last lap of Q3 since T4🚨
essentially 10 OUT OF 10 races
wow👍
We had an amazing George Russell watch party for the Belgian GP last weekend! Before the race, we kicked things off with a fun Grill The Grid activity, and everyone had an incredible time together. It was heartbreaking to see George’s race come to an early end after contact on the first lap. While the result wasn’t what we hoped for, our support for George will always remain. Thank you to every fan who joined us and made this gathering so special. 🩵
#GeorgeRussell #BelgiumGP #F1 #guangzhou
@MercedesAMGPCF1@ChrisMedlandF1 Fans predicted this exact Hungarian GP storyline after the last race. We all knew they’d swap power units, yet they still put on this whole charade.
Hungary FP1 fastest laps (Russell & Vesti):
the two Mercedes cars are still DEFINITELY not deploying the same ways.
Vesti's / Antonelli's PU is deploying more down the first Straight,
George exits corner 2 much faster, yet his top speed is still slower in the 3rd Straight (although he does carry more speed between Turns 8 & 9)
And I'd talked about a possible misfiring of George's audio beep (that signals lifting at the end of lap) at Spa FP2 - and I am more convinced now
Hungary FP1 fastest laps (Russell & Vesti):
the two Mercedes cars are still DEFINITELY not deploying the same ways.
Vesti's / Antonelli's PU is deploying more down the first Straight,
George exits corner 2 much faster, yet his top speed is still slower in the 3rd Straight (although he does carry more speed between Turns 8 & 9)
And I'd talked about a possible misfiring of George's audio beep (that signals lifting at the end of lap) at Spa FP2 - and I am more convinced now
So 12s are saying Kimi was paid in peanuts by mercedes and yet turns out his former manager Minardi (the one who Marco says had the idea to make him a driver) is now suing him for his 2025 earnings which were about 12-13 MILLIONS…
@randomguy331123@AKA1WDC@MercedesAMGPCF1 One’s a great dad who hit a cop and fled the scene, the other’s a great son speeding on the highway with zero regard for everyone’s safety. Funny how Toto poured millions into thousands of kilometres of private testing for him last year, yet the h2h score still landed at 21-3.