George Russell secured second place in qualifying for the Dutch Grand Prix, finishing just over one-tenth of a second behind pole-sitter Lando Norris. His Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli completed the top three, giving the team two cars inside the leading three positions.
Russell was encouraged by his performance after a challenging run of races and said he had regained confidence in the car. The Mercedes driver is now targeting a strong fight with McLaren when the lights go out on Sunday.
“First of all, congratulations to Lando and McLaren. They did an excellent job, but I also think we can be very pleased with our qualifying session. I genuinely believed we had enough pace to challenge for pole, but second place is still a very positive result. After several difficult races, it feels great to be back towards the front. I feel like I am finding my rhythm again, and my confidence is returning. Perhaps the summer break came at the right time for me. I am enjoying driving the car again, and having that confidence makes a big difference.We will see what tomorrow brings. We should have a good opportunity to put McLaren under pressure, so we will give it everything we have and try to make the most of the situation. The cooler conditions also seem to be helping with the high-speed performance. Everyone appears to be enjoying driving in these conditions, and the track feels really good at the moment. I am already looking forward to the race.”
