George Russell was left looking utterly despondent after his Mercedes car suffered hydraulics failure during the second day of testing in Bahrain ahead of the new F1 season on Friday. The superstar driver was forced to get out of his vehicle after it came to a halt on the track.
Russell impressed during his first season with Mercedes last year, despite being forced to contend with porpoising issues during some races. The 25-year-old outshone his more experienced team-mate Lewis Hamilton for much of the season and finished fourth in the Drivers’ Championship standing, two places ahead of the seven-time world champion.
The duo have been tipped to enjoy a much-improved season on the track this time around, with Mercedes undertaking extensive work over the winter to ensure their car performs better. But on Friday, Russell was dealt a blow when his car got stuck in gear four on Turn four.
Russell told Sky Sports that he was advised to go back to the garage and not change gear on the way as his team got ready to get to the bottom of the issue. But the ace only made it to Turn 10 before his car stopped. The broadcaster speculated that the problem could have been caused by a sensor issue. And when they asked Russell if everything was alright, the driver replied: “I’d rather be in the car.”
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“He had no clutch and that’s also controlled by hydraulics. He’s got the green light on top of the car as well so it’s not a hybrid issue. The team and himself were quick to react on that one and all the systems were doing what they should have been in terms of the warning.”
Mercedes later confirmed that Russell’s car did suffer hydraulic failure, with the team admitting it was “highly unlikely” the vehicle would be back on the track on Friday.
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