Russell credits cooler conditions for Mercedes’ Mexico qualifying leap

George Russell believes cooler conditions and a hard out-lap helped Mercedes find a late burst of speed in Mexico qualifying, after the team had seemed short of pace. He said temperatures were falling, clouds had arrived and the sun had gone down; he thought the conditions favoured Mercedes. His out-lap gave him more confidence because the tyres had gained grip, he said.

Russell described the weekend as very difficult and said he was still struggling to get the car fully under control. He also said he knew the speed was there but could not extract it consistently. Russell said he found half a second on one Q3 lap and nearly took pole. Lewis Hamilton beat him by 0.009 seconds; Russell congratulated Hamilton and said he was pleased with second place.