Rising F1 star George Russell happy with his pace

Rising Formula 1 star George Russell was happy with the pace he was able to set in the opening race of the 2021 season.

Russell – who hails from Tydd St Giles and attended Wisbech Grammar School – finished 14th in the Bahrain Grand Prix in his first outing of the campaign.

He had managed to scale to the heights of 10th place during the second half of the race before a pit stop saw him rejoin the action in 16th spot.

Russell, in his Williams FW43B, then managed to claw back a couple of places to finish 14th, just behind Esteban Ocon.

He said: “It was nice to be racing and I had a good little tussle at the beginning, making a few places and losing a few places. I thought it was a well-executed race.

“The first stint was tricky but the second and third were as good as can be and our relative pace was quite strong.

“That was the maximum and I think our relative pace was good. I am now looking forward to Imola and assessing where we are there.”

Russell – who had started 15th on the grid – had dropped back one place in the opening exchanges of the race after an incident on the first lap saw the safety car deployed.

However, he soon started to mount a charge through the field and had taken 13th place before again dropping back to 16th.

He did then manage to take advantage of a spree of pit stops to forge his way into 11th spot before his first tyre change dropped him back down to 16th.

The 23-year-old continued to climb the grid, peaking in 10th spot, before eventually having to settle for 14th place.

Russell will now turn his attentions to the second round of the season at the Italian Grand Prix over the weekend of April 17 and 18.

This will be his third season as a Grand Prix driver after joining Williams in 2019.

He is managed by Mercedes and last year made his mark as a replacement for Lewis Hamilton at the Sakhir Grand Prix where he was only denied victory by a mix-up at a team pit stop.

Russell has also joined the Grand Prix Drivers’ Association this season as a director after replacing the outgoing Romain Grosjean.

The assembly of active Formula 1 drivers was originally founded to improve safety standards within the sport and Russell was proud to start his new role.

He commented: “It is an honour to be nominated a GPDA director. I appreciate the support of my fellow drivers in entrusting this role to me and recognise the responsibility it entails.

“In its six decades of existence, the GPDA has been an integral part of supporting and shaping F1 safety. I am looking forward to tackling the new challenges and opportunities.”