George Russell was left disappointed at the end of qualifying for the Tuscan Grand Prix after securing 18th on the grid for the ninth round of the 2020 Formula 1 World Championship.

After an encouraging Friday which saw the Briton take 16th in both FP1 and FP2, George’s preparations on Saturday morning were halted when a brake system issue prevented the 22-year-old from completing any running in FP3.

Despite a sizable job lying ahead, George’s FW43 was repaired in time for qualifying, and in the dying seconds of Q1, the British racer was sitting in the elimination zone, 0.125s of the cut-off in 18th.

On his final run, George posted his quickest lap of the weekend, producing a 1:17.232s tour of Mugello despite running through the gravel at Turn 7, keeping the throttle pinned to the floor.

This lap promoted George to 12th overall, however, as the track evolved, the Williams Racing driver slipped through the field, ultimately registering the 18th-fastest time and missing out on Q2 by 0.160s.

George Russell – Williams Racing Driver

“We were quick from the off and I had a really good feeling in the car. We changed the downforce level from yesterday, which I planned to run this morning but didn’t get the chance to. It was a bit of a change for us, and missing FP3 made it difficult. I am disappointed I couldn’t finish my final lap as that would have been a great way to reward the team, as Q2 was definitely on the cards for us today. A big thanks to the boys for getting my car turned around after FP3 as there was a lot of work on their hands. Nevertheless, I think we did a good job today.”

George will line up on the 10th row of the grid for Sunday’s Tuscan Grand Prix where he will race 59 laps of the iconic Mugello Circuit.