The Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula 1 Team were further off the pace than expected on the opening day of the French Grand Prix, with George Russell ending the day almost eight-tenths behind Circuit Paul Ricard pacesetter Carlos Sainz Jr.
The British driver ended both Free Practice 1 and Free Practice 2 in fourth-place, leaving Russell convinced that the team have “work to do”. Russell may have been disappointed to have ended the day so far off the pace, after Mercedes installed a number of upgrades to the W13 which saw them predicted as favourites prior to the opening running.
Despite being far off the pace, Russell found the day “enjoyable”, but believes there is a “lot to go over” on Saturday.
“It was quite enjoyable to be back out there at this track as it’s quite a fun one in certain aspects. Some teams struggled more than others with the high temperatures. We only did five consecutive laps but we’re also probably a bit further off the pace than what we had hoped for. We have work to do tonight here at the track and back at the factories. There’s a lot to go over and we need to make sure we can optimise our pace for tomorrow.
“From the running today, it looks like we’re finding time but all the other teams keep bringing updates too, and the whole grid moves forward. So, although we’re finding time, our competitors do as well. And we need to look at the data to see if our upgrades are working as sometimes it’s not as simple as just seeing it on the lap charts.”
“We’re not spectacular here” – Lewis Hamilton
Lewis Hamilton made the most of FP2, his only session of the day. Hamilton was replaced by Nyck de Vries in FP1, meaning that the seven-time World Champion had less time than his opponents to get up to speed.
Despite this, Hamilton ended the day in fifth; however, he was virtually a second off Sainz’s pace. The British driver ended the opening day confused, with Hamilton expecting the W13 to be much stronger than it’s currently showing around the incredibly smooth circuit.
The Brit wants the team to “dig deep into the data”, with Hamilton ending the day “further behind” than anticipated.
“Nyck did a strong job this morning, he was great out there and I’m grateful for the work he did. We made some changes from FP1 to FP2 which is crazy considering I haven’t even driven the car yet. We still have a lot of work to do, we’re not spectacular here and I don’t know why, so hopefully overnight, we can make a little bit of a step forward as we’re further behind than what we anticipated for this weekend.
“We need to dig deep into the data, but it looks like were lacking downforce today. It wasn’t the best session for me, mostly because I missed the first one. I tried to get up to speed, but it was very hot here and there are a lot of slow laps so overall, I think I did alright.”
“We got the information that we needed” – Nyck de Vries
De Vries drove excellently in his second FP1 session of the season, after driving for Williams Racing at the Spanish Grand Prix.
The Dutchman managed to complete “all test items” assigned to him by the team, whilst managing to end the day’s first session in ninth-place.
The reigning Formula E champion was “very grateful” to have been given the opportunity to drive in FP1, and “felt comfortable” with the W13.
“I’m very grateful for the opportunity, it was a great experience. Obviously, it was very cool to be back in such a fast car and a bit of a reset of what I’m used to. All in all, a great session and great opportunity. We went through all test items and managed to do quite a bit of work for the team. It was a good session, it felt quickly on the pace and I felt comfortable with the car.
“The team was very supportive, and we got the information that we needed. Lewis was amazing and also very supportive. I also had Angela by my side as well which was really sweet. So overall a very productive session.”
