‘We’ve got to be realistic’ says Russell after Baku podium

George Russell insisted Mercedes had to be realistic despite a podium finish on the streets of Baku, having inherited P3 thanks to Carlos Sainz and Sergio Perez's collision.

Lewis Hamilton made it double points for the Silver Arrows by securing ninth at the flag, with the team opting for a pit lane start after fitting new PU components following qualifying.

Russell’s race didn’t get off to the best start in Baku, as he lost a place off the line to Max Verstappen. But after pitting for the hard compound tyre, the Mercedes came alive and Russell was able to hunt down and pass the Dutchman out on track.

He was even closing in on the Sainz/Perez battle before the two crashed out in dramatic fashion, promoting him from fifth to third at the flag.

While a podium finish and the points that go with it are always welcome, Russell was under no illusions as to where Mercedes ranked in the pecking order at the end of a tricky weekend that saw the team complete not one but two Power Unit changes.

BAKU, AZERBAIJAN - SEPTEMBER 15: George Russell of Mercedes and Great Britain during the F1 Grand — Russell's pace improved dramatically once he pitted for the hard compound tyre in Baku

“Definitely surprised,” was his take on his podium finish. “I think there was so much hard work this weekend for everybody in the team. There were engine changes on my side, engine changes for Lewis, so much going on, everybody was working so hard.

“We had a really bad start to the race, I was dropping off a lot, but on the hard tyre I think we were one of the quickest out there and that was great. Got past Max, so an added bonus to stand on the podium.

“I mean we’ve got to be realistic still. We should’ve finished fifth today, that was the true result. Obviously with Lando [Norris’] qualifying yesterday he probably would’ve been up there as well, so I don’t want to get carried away with ourselves with this podium today. We’ve got a lot of work to do. Hopefully Singapore’s a slightly better weekend.”

As for Hamilton, having taken on a raft of new PU components after qualifying, he was resigned to a long afternoon after his pit lane start. He made up plenty of ground early on, and again after his pit stop – and spent much of the latter part of the race battling the two rookies, Franco Colapinto and Oliver Bearman.

“Today was a difficult race,” he said afterwards. “We had a good day on Friday, but the rest of the weekend was tough. We made some changes heading into Saturday that didn’t work out, but we had to live with them.

“We also knew it would be challenging to overtake today. Despite the long straight, it is hard to follow through the second sector. Franco Colapinto and Oliver Bearman, who I was racing for a lot of the afternoon, did such a great job. It is great to see the youngsters like them coming through and doing so well. For their first and second races, it was very impressive.”

Hamilton was seen shaking hands with both rookies straight after the race, calling racing with the next generation “really cool.” Both Colapinto and Bearman scored points, finishing either side of Hamilton at the flag.

And the better news for Mercedes is that Hamilton confirmed more upgrades are planned before the end of the season, which they’ll hope moves them back into the fight up front.