Lewis Hamilton claims he’ll talk ‘offline’ with George Russell over their unnecessary on-track tussle in Suzuka

Lewis Hamilton was barely able to hang onto fifth place during the race at the Suzuka F1 circuit.

Lewis Hamilton claims he’ll talk ‘offline’ with George Russell over their unnecessary on-track tussle in Suzuka

Lewis Hamilton and George Russell (Via IMAGO)

The 2023 Japanese GP came to an end just a while ago, with the Mercedes drivers managing a disappointing P5 and P7 finish. During the course of the 53-lap dash at the Suzuka International Race Course, Lewis Hamilton and George Russell were seen scrobbling among themselves for track position on several occasions, and the former has admitted that he will have a behind-closed-doors chat about it with Russell.

During the closing stages of the race, Hamilton, Russell, and Carlos Sainz were fighting over fifth place, with the younger Brit leading the trio. However, Mercedes asked Russell to give up his position in favor of his teammate, and that cost him losing a place to the Ferrari as well. After the incident, George Russell was fuming over the team radio.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxcg3sPQlZg

Lewis Hamilton was asked to dwell on his tussles with his teammate during the Japanese GP, and while talking about the same, he told the media, “For sure We’ll talk offline […] First, we’re not close, 2nd, we’re not fighting for a championship.” The former 7-time World Champion has deemed his tussles with Russell as something that could have been avoided.

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He thinks that Mercedes is only fighting for second place in the Constructors Championship, and thus there was no need for him and his teammate to fight among themselves. The Brackley-based team’s only target during the 2023 F1 season is to finish ahead of the Maranello-based Ferrari F1 in the Constructors standings.

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Lewis Hamilton is currently third in the 2023 Drivers’ standings

While Lewis Hamilton has made it known that he will have a chat with George Russell over their Japanese GP shenanigans, the former is currently third in the 2023 Drivers standings. Fernando Alonso and the Aston Martin team have struggled for pace since the last few races, and this has allowed Hamilton to get the jump on his rival.

Toto Wolff and Mercedes crew working on Lewis Hamilton's W14
Toto Wolff and Mercedes crew working on Lewis Hamilton’s W14 (Credits: IMAGO)

As things stand, the 38-year-old has so far managed 190 points in the standings, whereas Alonso has only managed 174 in the same number of F1 outings. Moreover, if Hamilton can keep up his good run of form during the remaining races, he could become a threat to Sergio Perez, who is not too far ahead in the standings.

The Mexican driver is currently on 223 points, and considering the mixed fortunate he has had this year, there is a real chance that Lewis Hamilton could end his 2023 F1 season behind Max Verstappen. The W14 has not proved to be an easy car to tame, and considering this, it would be fascinating to see whether the car would prove competitive during the Qatart GP.

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