George Lines-Up 17th on the Grid in Azerbaijan

April 27, 2019
ROKiT Williams Racing driver George Russell will start the Azerbaijan Grand Prix from P17.
Read More

George Lines-Up 17th on the Grid in Azerbaijan

April 27, 2019
ROKiT Williams Racing driver George Russell will start the Azerbaijan Grand Prix from P17.

George Lines-Up 17th on the Grid in Azerbaijan

April 27, 2019
ROKiT Williams Racing driver George Russell will start the Azerbaijan Grand Prix from P17.

George Lines-Up 17th on the Grid in Azerbaijan

Published:
April 27, 2019
at
6:30 pm

ROKiT Williams Racing Driver George Russell set the 19th fastest time in Qualifying for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, but will start from P17 tomorrow on the streets of the Baku City Circuit.

Following an incredibly unfortunate Friday, which saw George requiring a new chassis and missing the whole of Free Practice - the Briton kept up his perfect Qualifying record against teammate Robert Kubica.

George was completing his opening laps in Free Practice one, when a manhole cover was dislodged on the long straight between Turns 2 and 3. He was completely unsighted, as the loose manhole cover caused a huge amount of damage to the floor and chassis of his FW42. Luckily George was unharmed in the incident, but it caused the cancellation of FP1 and it also required a replacement chassis for George in order to complete the race weekend, such was the extent of the repair needed.

He was forced to sit out the FP2 session on Friday, meaning he only had Free Practice on the Saturday morning to acclimatise himself with the Baku City Circuit, prepare himself for Qualifying and get set-up information for the Grand Prix on Sunday.

Despite this setback, George was able to improve on every run in Qualifying - setting a 1:45.042s lap time to set the 19th fastest time of the session and ahead of his teammate in the intra-team Williams Racing battle.

Due to grid penalties affecting Alfa Romeo's Antonio Giovinazzi and Aston Martin Red Bull Racing's Pierre Gasly, George will start tomorrow's race from P17 on the grid for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

George Russell - ROKiT Williams Racing Driver:

"Friday was a tough day, it’s a shame for the guys to spend yesterday preparing the car to only do a couple of laps. I was going down the straight and I felt a big bang through the chassis and everything turned off; it’s just unfortunate.
I went into qualifying quite blind after missing all the running yesterday. Baku is a circuit that requires a lot confidence for you to maintain your momentum. From a personal perspective, I felt comfortable during qualifying and got the most out of the package. It’s been a tough weekend and will be a long race tomorrow, but we must stay positive and keep making the most of the situation."

Photographs Courtesy of XPB Images

Additional Press Content Courtesy of ROKiT Williams Racing