© Jiri Krenek for Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Ltd.
George Russell topped the Japanese Grand Prix FP2, but the Briton says “it’s probably not going to be that representative for this weekend”.
George Russell and Lewis Hamilton got P1 and P2 respectively in the wet Japanese Grand Prix FP2, however, they went through three new sets on intermediate tyres, while Red Bull for example ran the whole session on one set.
This was done to learn the best way to run in these wet conditions, as Mercedes had issues with this in earlier races.
This very fact is the reason why George Russell says the times set by the team in FP2 are not representative.
“It’s probably not going to be that representative for this weekend but definitely good learning for the future,” the Briton said.
“There’s a chance on Sunday it could be wet, but it looks pretty dry tomorrow. Nevertheless, it’s always nice to end the day top of the time sheets and definitely made some improvements from FP1 as we were at the bottom. Not a bad afternoon.
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“It’s good learning because you have to try and understand when you have that crossover. It does pay dividends and sometimes we’ve not capitalized this year but there will be a race at some point — might not be this year, might not be next year, might not even be the the year after — but hopefully we can capitalize.”
Ultimately, George admits he is not sure what to expect from the rest of the weekend.
“To be honest, no idea because we think it’s going to be dry tomorrow. I think we’ll be fighting as always, for the top six positions.
“I hope we can have a shot at something better but I truly don’t know. We’ll have to wait and see.
“FP3 will be a crucial session for everybody and trying to fight for a good position,” Russell concluded.
