George Russell proved his class at Zandvoort by clinching pole position for the Dutch GP Sprint Race. The Mercedes driver set the fastest time in Sprint Qualifying, beating reigning champion Lando Norris and Ferrari's Charles Leclerc.
This is George Russell's third Sprint Pole of the season, a positive start after a first half marred by reliability issues. Russell admitted he was thrilled to be competitive again on a track he loves.
“Great to be back here after the break. It’s a circuit I really love and needs a lot of commitment. It was obviously a tough end to the first half of the year, but really happy to come back. It’s been a little while since I’ve done one of these interviews so, yeah, it’s nice,” Russell said.
“The lap felt really good, it all came together really nicely. The McLarens looked quick, Ferrari looked quick so glad to pull it off when it mattered,” he added.
However, it was a less rewarding session for teammate Kimi Antonelli. The championship leader ran wide at Turn 14 in SQ1, dragging his Mercedes through the gravel and picking up floor damage. Despite that, he progressed to SQ3 and qualified P5, just ahead of Max Verstappen.
“I had a couple of holes in the floor, when I came in they initially said it was a loss of 25 points [of downforce],” Antonelli explained. “It is what it is, too much entry speed in the last corner of Lap 1, lost the rear and it was not easy to build the confidence back.”
“But we try again tomorrow. We’ll tidy the car up and go again,” he concluded.
With this result, the front row for the Sprint Race promises a fierce battle. Russell will start from pole, with Norris alongside, and Leclerc lurking in P3.
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