Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff has revealed how George Russell’s pole position was upheld, after some confusion surrounding the qualifying results at the Austrian Grand Prix.
Russell set the fastest lap of the Q3 session, ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton, prompting wild celebrations from the Brit and his Mercedes team.
But there were some initial doubts about the validity of his pole, due to the fact that a Max Verstappen crash right at the end of Q3 had created yellow flag conditions at the penultimate corner.
Sky Sports F1 confirmed that both Russell and Kimi Antonelli had been handed deleted lap verdicts, yet an FIA note revealed that there would be no further investigation into Russell for an alleged yellow flag infringement.
However, Sky Sports’ David Croft later revealed that the deleted lap times from the two drivers were actually their in-laps, after they had set their previous laps.
All the data suggested that it was a single yellow flag, meaning you do not have to completely abort the lap, just slow down at that section of the track. Antonelli admitted after qualifying that he made the mistake of thinking it was a double-waved yellow.
Wolff’s explanation of Russell’s controversial lap time
Following qualifying, Wolff immediately set the record straight about Russell’s lap time, not giving an inch to any rivals who might have been considering a protest.
“It was a 100m lift, single yellow,” Wolff told Sky Sports F1’s Ted Kravitz after the session. “A 100m lift of George Russell loses a tenth and a half. It is completely on. It was a massive lift.”
Wolff then went on to praise Russell’s ability to bounce back after a difficult few races, in which the Brit has fallen to 50 points behind his team-mate and championship rival Antonelli.
“Well done to George for how he managed it. I am proud. I think Kimi Antonelli was under the impression it was a double yellow.”
