Mercedes driver George Russell avoided a penalty and was given a warning by the FIA for his pit lane incident during the 2025 Austrian GP qualifying session. It was a difficult session for the British driver, as he could only manage a P5 finish and was over seven times behind the pole position lap set by McLaren driver Lando Norris.
The 27-year-old was in the running for a second-row finish in qualifying at the Red Bull Ring but found himself eclipsed by the Ferrari pair of Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton. Russell, who had won the Austrian GP last year, was coming off a successful race weekend in Canada, where he won his first race of the year.
However, there was a cloud over George Russell’s final result in the qualifying session, as he was noted by the race stewards for his pit lane incident. The four-time F1 race winner had dangerously entered the fast lane after he had blocked several cars while joining the pack.
The Brit was able to avoid any racing penalties for his incident after the FIA agreed with his assessment of being in the blind spot. In their statement, the stewards wrote:
“The driver tried to radio the team, but in doing so, accidentally slipped the clutch, causing the car to jump forward. The team representative admitted the team could have done a better job in managing the situation.”
George Russell, though, was relatively relaxed about the outcome of the incident after he explained his take to the media.
George Russell comments on avoiding a penalty for the Austrian GP
Mercedes driver George Russell admitted that he was aware of the drivers behind him but was unable to move as they were caught in his blind spot in the pit lane.
As per RacingNews365, the Mercedes man reflected on the subject and said:
“I mean, I went and then saw a few drivers pulling out. But then you have a massive blind spot, you don’t have a window you can look through, and you can only move your head so much. It is a massive blind spot, so I’ve got to go to the stewards, but I don’t expect any issues, it is just part of it.”
He also commented on his P5 finish in qualifying and added:
“It was the maximum we could have got. The gap to everyone except Lando is quite understandable, but the gap to Lando was bigger than we thought. But we know our strengths and weaknesses, and this was never going to be a strong race for us. It is just a combination of everything.”
George Russell would be aiming for a podium in the main race, given the similar performances of the cars around him.
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Edited by Tushhita Barua
