George Russell braces himself for the upcoming Belgian GP. A lot of rain is forecast for the race weekend at Spa-Francorchamps, which could provide the necessary spectacle. Earlier, many drivers, including Max Verstappen, expressed their concerns about the role of energy management on the longest circuit of the F1 calendar. However, Russell is mainly focused on what threatens to be the first real rain race of the year.
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Verstappen already warned after the British GP that the Belgian GP – one of his favorite stops on the calendar – threatens to be a matter of just sitting it out. “This is how Formula 1 is at the moment, you can’t do much about it,” he sighed at Silverstone, where energy management again played a prominent role. “Spa and also Monza are more of the same. And that’s a shame, because I think Spa is a very nice circuit. But it’s not fun with these cars.”
However, the predicted rain can still provide spectacle in Belgium, as Russell knows. “You can’t really prepare for it, because you don’t know what to expect,” the Brit explained on the Nu Silver Arrows Radio Show. “You don’t know what kind of beast is under you,” he referred to the unpredictability of the cars in wet conditions. “There are rumors that the tires might not be as good as in previous years. So as a driver, you might have to be a bit more cautious during your out-lap and your first lap.”
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No lap is the same
What does that mean for a lap at Spa? “You probably won’t go full throttle through Eau Rouge on your first fast lap,” Russell noted. “At least not if it’s raining.” Mercedes’ deputy team principal Bradley Lord added that no two laps in the rain are the same. “That’s why you can’t really prepare well,” Russell added. “As soon as you go on track, you just have to be flexible and able to adapt.”
Russell once put his car on the front row in Belgium during his time at Williams. He also finished second in the race because the main event was stopped after only a few laps behind the safety car due to heavy rain. At Mercedes, he officially never got further than fourth place. In 2024, he was flagged as the winner, but his car was found too light by the FIA stewards after the race. He was disqualified, after which teammate Lewis Hamilton inherited the victory.
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