George Russell proven spot on as Lewis Hamilton forced to change tune

George Russell’s Spanish Grand Prix prediction came true while Lewis Hamilton was forced to eat his words as the team secured their best result of the season. Russell tipped the Silver Arrows’ pace to get better over the weekend after a difficult Friday for the German squad.

Russell and Hamilton were in the throngs of the midfield after practice, half a second slower than Red Bull. The squad were also caught napping behind both Ferraris, an Aston Martin and an Alpine after FP2.

But, Russell cut a positive tone, suggesting the team would come good on Saturday and Sunday when it mattered. After FP2, Russell said: “We learned a huge amount today and have got a lot of data to go through tonight.

“We need to learn what we can from the information we’ve got and try to move forward; I think we can find some gains as there were a few surprises out there today. It’s only Friday and we tend not to be Friday specialists.

“We usually take a step forward on Saturday and Sunday, which is the right way to be. We expect the story to be slightly different tomorrow and then again on Sunday.” Meanwhile, Hamilton was more reserved, suggesting the team may be unable to get anywhere near the front of the field.

He explained: “From the pace that I had today it will be a struggle to get into the top 10. It is not going to be easy, that is for sure. We are fighting as hard as we can. It was a difficult day getting on top of the tyres. The car feels… like the car. Hopefully, we can make some changes overnight.”

But, Mercedes did turn things around with Hamilton lining up P4 for the Grand Prix. Ahead of the race, the seven-time champion was called out for his criticism on Friday where he accepted his prediction was incorrect.

Interviewer Rosanna Tennant said: “Hate to say it Lewis but you were wrong. You thought you couldn’t get into the top 10 and it’s P4.” Hamilton laughed, replying: “I’m okay with being wrong. It’s okay. Yeah I was definitely wrong.”

Mercedes went on to secure the team’s first double podium finish of the season with Hamilton P2 and Russell in third.

It came as Perez started lower down the field after being eliminated in Q2 on Saturday while Fernando Alonso and the Ferraris didn’t have the pace to challenge near the front. Mercedes now lie second in the Constructors’ Championship, 18 points ahead of Aston Martin.