‘That’s the beast we’re dealing with’ – Russell mystified by Mercedes issues after recovery drive in Austin

George Russell was pleased to finish off his US Grand Prix with a points finish after a big crash in qualifying – but insisted Mercedes must find some consistency with their W15 car at the next round in Mexico.
It was a weekend of highs and lows for the Briton as he went from a solid P5 result in the Sprint to crashing out of qualifying – a snap of oversteer sending him into the barriers and forcing the team to rebuild the car overnight.
WATCH: Russell ‘paid the price’ as he suffers nightmare end to qualifying in Austin with high-speed spin into the barriers

Mercedes brought an upgrades package on both cars to Austin which was unsalvageable on car 63 after the crash, so they were forced to reinstall a floor that was last used before the summer shutdown.
The fixes led to Russell starting the United States Grand Prix from the pit lane, but over the 56-lap race he steadily worked his way through the field to cross the line in P6, aided by a late overtake on Sergio Perez – though the Briton was left incredulous when he was given a penalty for an overtake on Valtteri Bottas (see the clip below).
Asked how happy he was with his performance, Russell said: “Definitely pleased with today, no doubt. Starting from the pitlane, not really sure what we were going to have during the race, and especially going back to a floor that we ran in Canada 10 races ago, more I guess.
“To end up P6 ahead of a Red Bull as well, that was really great. Obviously you always question what could have been, but we’re dealing with a difficult car at the moment.
“Lewis [Hamilton] never really makes any mistakes and you saw today he had the exact same thing as what happened to me yesterday. That’s the beast we’re dealing with right now.”
READ MORE: ‘I’ve never spun in the race before’ – Hamilton brands his US GP ‘frustrating’ after rare spin ends race early

The race was also frustrating for Hamilton who, after improving from P17 to P12 on the opening laps, spun off at Turn 19 and beached his W15 to bring his day to an early close.
From looking rapid in practice to a Q1 exit and then a crash for Russell and spin for Hamilton, Mercedes left Austin with a list of questions about how to harness their performance potential and iron out the problems they suffered in Texas.
With the paddock embarking on the second round of a triple header in Mexico in a just a few days, the Brackley outfit do not have time on their side when it comes to regrouping for the remaining races – but Russell said it was crucial they try to get a handle on the car.
WATCH: Hamilton brings out the Safety Car after spinning and beaching his car in the Austin gravel

“I’m looking forward to things being a little bit calmer or consistent because you just don’t know what you’re going to get every time you go out,” Russell said. “We’re all on this emotional rollercoaster.
“Clearly the car has the potential to be fighting right at the front, but when we are in that position we don’t really know why we are. When we’re not, we also don’t really know why we’re not. It’s just a real challenge to unpick it and understand it.”