F1 News: George Russell Reveals Mercedes Is Set To Investigate Puzzling Discrepancy - "Trying To Understand"

Mercedes investigates the fluctuating qualifying results between Russell and Hamilton.

George Russell recently highlighted Mercedes' efforts to analyse the inconsistent qualifying performances between himself and teammate Lewis Hamilton throughout the 2023 Formula 1 season. 

Key Takeaways:

• Unprecedented Qualifying Equality: An unusual equilibrium was observed as Russell and Hamilton each out-qualified the other 11 times during the season. However, the qualifying sessions often resulted in one driver significantly outpacing the other.
• Marginal Seasonal Difference: Over the course of the season, the time gap between Hamilton and Russell was remarkably slim, with Hamilton being just 0.017 seconds faster on average. This contrasted sharply with the more pronounced gaps seen during individual race weekends.
• Focused Team Analysis: Both Mercedes drivers have recognised the need to understand the fluctuating qualifying performances, with Russell specifically pointing out the team's investigative approach to these variations.

Mercedes' Formula 1 season was notable for the intriguing pattern of qualifying results between teammates George Russell and Lewis Hamilton. Each driver managed to out-qualify the other exactly 11 times, a rare occurrence in the sport. This happened in a season where Mercedes ended up second in the Constructors Championship, despite not winning a single race.

Despite the equal number of times each driver out-qualified the other, the weekends often saw one of them significantly ahead in terms of time. Yet, when looking at the season as a whole, Hamilton narrowly outperformed Russell, being faster by an average of just 0.017 seconds.

Mercedes Press Image

Russell openly discussed this phenomenon and the team's efforts to decode it. He mentioned, as quoted by RacingNews365:

“It's definitely something we've noticed. Lewis and I, over the course of the year, I don't think we've ever been at the same pace.

"Over the last few years our qualifying record is almost the same. But it's either one driver is six tenths ahead of the other. So it's something we're trying to understand.”

He also talked about the challenges faced by the drivers in trying to bridge this gap, saying:

“I think often when you're slightly on the backfoot as a driver, you're chasing to close that gap. Sometimes in doing so, you take a step backwards rather than actually close that gap naturally.

"It’s something I'm trying to figure out myself and I'm sure he’s trying to figure out as well.”