Andrew Shovlin admitted Mercedes had not expected to be faster than Max Verstappen, despite a 'really impressive drive' by George Russell.
Mercedes admit George Russell’s sprint win over Max Verstappen was ‘unexpected’Andrew Shovlin admitted Mercedes had not expected to be faster than Max Verstappen on Saturday, despite a “really impressive drive” by George Russell.
Verstappen was one of only two drivers, along with Nicholas Latifi, to take part in the sprint on medium tyres instead of the preferred soft compound, and Mercedes trackside engineering director Shovlin feels the softer rubber on the Mercedes played its part in proceedings, with Lewis Hamilton also making up five places to take third in the sprint.
Russell and Verstappen went toe-to-toe over several laps before the Mercedes driver was eventually able to make the decisive move, and Shovlin sang his praises after the chequered flag. “We know that George knows how to race,” he said. “He’s very smart behind the wheel. It was nice today to give him a car where he could show what he can do right at the front and we know Max is always a difficult guy to be up against, really impressive drive by him.
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