George Russell refuses to blame Lando Norris’ error for Singapore GP crash

George Russell crashed out of the Singapore GP moments after Lando Norris clipped the barriers.

George Russell refuses to blame Lando Norris’ error for Singapore GP crash

George Russell and Lando Norris (image via IMAGO)

George Russell showed a decent pace at the Singapore GP. The British driver was aiming to take the lead in the race in the last few laps. However, the Mercedes driver made a mistake and ended up in the barriers on the final lap right after Lando Norris tapped the wall in front of Russell. Now, the 25-year-old has claimed that it was not the fault of the McLaren driver.

Russell was fascinated by the way his thoughts ran right after seeing Norris make slight contact with the wall. The Mercedes driver was just processing the incident in front of his eyes before he made an even bigger error and crashed into the barrier. He said, as reported by RacingNews365, “It’s incredible how quickly the mind thinks because I saw Lando brush the wall. And in that split second I thought ‘Oh, he’s just hit the wall.’ And two-tenths of a second later I’ve hit it.”

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The British driver emphasized that Lando Norris’ incident played no role in his crash just a few tenths later. George Russell believed that it was on his own accord that he failed to keep control of his car and had an unfortunate end to his race at Marina Bay. The 25-year-old stated, “It definitely wasn’t because of Lando’s brush that caught me off[guard].”

Also read: WATCH: Carlos Sainz celebrates his Singapore GP win with his girlfriend Rebecca Donaldson at a nightclub in the city-state

Can George Russell bounce back from a disappointing Singapore GP?

The Mercedes driver had a stellar pace in the ending stages of the race. George Russell and teammate Lewis Hamilton had pitted for fresher tires in a bid to fight for the lead of the race. However, the Mercedes drivers could not get past the McLaren of Lando Norris who had the DRS courtesy of race-leader Carlos Sainz. This led to the 25-year-old growing frustrated behind Norris.

George Russell driving his Mercedes W14 at the Singapore GP
George Russell driving his Mercedes W14 at the Singapore GP (Credits: @MercedesAMGF1/Twitter)

Subsequently, George Russell ended up binning his Mercedes into the barriers and losing out on a podium finish. The British driver essentially gifted the final spot on the podium to Hamilton. Understandably, Russell was disappointed as his race got over in this manner. Although, Lewis Hamilton had consoled his teammate for his good pace throughout the weekend.

Now, George Russell will need to keep this aside and focus on the next round of the season in Japan. The British driver will have positive takeaways from the weekend at Marina Bay. The Mercedes driver had the pace to potentially take the lead in the race. As such, Russell and Mercedes might get the chance to battle for the lead in the coming races.

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