Mercedes’ George Russell apologies for outburst after Canadian GP retirement
George Russell has apologised for letting his emotions get the better of him after he was forced to retire midway through the recent Canadian Grand Prix.
The British driver’s race came to an abrupt end on lap 30 when he was struck by a power unit failure at Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve.
When Russell parked up, he threw his headrest out of his car in frustration, before launching his gloves to the ground once he had climbed over the nearby barriers.
Russell had enjoyed a thrilling wheel-to-wheel battle with Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli, spanning the entire first third of the Grand Prix.
To make it all the more infuriating, the former Williams man had just edged back into the lead and he was the favourite to claim maximum points when his race ended.
The Silver Arrows’ technical director, James Allison, has since revealed Russell’s engine conked out due to a serious battery issue.
Taking to social media afterward, Russell reflected: “Apologies to the marshals and FIA for making their job harder than it needed to be, lots of emotions in the moment.”
It was no wonder Russell was aggrieved as his non-finish helped Italian rival Antonelli extend his lead at the summit of the drivers’ championship to 43 points.
There’s still plenty of time to catch up at this early point in the season, but it certainly won’t be an easy gap to close.
Without a podium in his last three Grands Prix, Russell has a chance to make amends in Monaco, on the weekend of June 5-7.