F1 | Mercedes, George Russell leads the Friday standings: "My times are still a bit misleading"

George Russell finally makes his debut with Mercedes, which shows the number 63 today: a day certainly dreamed of, perhaps planned in the near future by the top management of the German company, confident in the abilities of the British driver. Of course, not even George would have imagined that this day would arrive so soon, in this strange 2020, thanks to an unexpected opportunity. Unfortunately Lewis Hamilton contracted covid-19 and the seven-time world champion was obviously forced into isolation. Mercedes chose Russell to replace him, creating a rather pleasant situation for the team itself: Hamilton is still without a contract, as is team principal Toto Wolff. A move ahead of 2021, or just a test for Russell? And what would happen if the Williams driver did better than Valtteri Bottas? Today's times speak for themselves: Russell was ahead of everyone in the first free practice session, trailing his teammate by 3 tenths. In the second session, Russell was still first, although Bottas' fastest time was canceled due to exceeding the track limits.

"It was a good first day with the W11, but there is definitely still a lot of work to do – said Russell, for the first time as a Mercedes driver – iThe new layout is very different from the one usually used, it is not an easy track. The qualifying times will be very close, we expect a race full of drama and twists. It was great working with the team today and with every lap with this car I learn something more.

"I think my times are a bit misleading at the moment, they don't represent the real pace of the car – admitted the Williams driver – I had some problems in the runs with a full fuel load in FP2, which was fundamental to prepare for the race. The Red Bulls were very fast in the long runs and Valtteri was fastest in the second free practice session, but his time was cancelled. It's going to be tough, so we'll work hard tonight. There is still a lot of work to do, to try to be as comfortable as possible inside the car, but also to find the perfect set-up. All in all, it was an encouraging first day, I'm excited, can't wait to get back into W11 tomorrow".