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Martin Brundle and David Coulthard shared the same reaction to George Russell’s “odd” off during qualifying for the British Grand Prix.
In front of his home faithful, George Russell endured yet another difficult qualifying session as he watched his younger teammate take pole position for the fifth time this season.
The British driver, who has never appeared on the podium at his home Grand Prix, ended the qualifying shootout with a P4 grid slot for Sunday’s race, setting a lap time nearly four tenths adrift of Antonelli’s overall benchmark.
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Kimi Antonelli claimed his fifth pole position of the season at Silverstone!
What’s more, the seven-time Grand Prix winner also suffered a strange moment in Q1, in which he went off into the gravel and kissed the barrier at turn seven.
Fortunately, Russell’s W17 suffered minimal damage, but it was a rare moment that may have showcased his desperation.
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British F1 pundits react to George Russell’s ‘odd’ moment at the British Grand Prix
During Channel 4’s coverage of qualifying at the British Grand Prix, David Coulthard was seemingly perplexed at Russell’s off, highlighting how he had never seen anyone else suffer such an issue at the same complex of corners in the past.
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“That is very, very strange,” he said (16:11 04/07) “It looked like a push! That car has been driven into the gravel. I’ve never seen that. I’ve seen people spin there, but I’ve never seen anyone be pushed. He’s obviously not pulled the clutch in, and it’s just driven him into the barrier.”
Co-commentator on the British broadcaster’s coverage, Jolyon Palmer, added, “Very odd. It’s hard to say that that is a driving error. If it is, it’s a bizarre one that I’ve never seen before.
“From Brooklands into Luffield, you’re not hard on the throttle at all. It’s a little squeeze, and then you’re immediately back on the brakes for the right-hander.”
On Sky Sports F1’s coverage of the event, fellow F1 pundit Martin Brundle was equally as puzzled. “Oh my goodness, he’s just actually understeered completely off the road,” he told viewers (16:11 04/07).
“What’s happened there? The right part of his wing is broken. The right looks odd because it’s pushed the left-hand side up. It literally understeered off the road.”
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In BBC Live 5’s coverage, Damon Hill noted how lucky Russell was to escape with very little damage (16:12 04/07): “He’s coming down towards Luffield, past the BRDC on the right. Everything looks fine until he just locks up, going into there.
“That’s not even a big stop, but he’s hardly hit anything with suspension, which is good news, but I think he’s done the front wing, so he might be able to recover. Yeah, just deep in on the brakes, tried to get the thing to turn, locked up the right front, and ran out of road.”
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