George Russell was denied a strong finish at the Russian Grand Prix, with the ROKiT Williams Racing driver experiencing a braking issue in the second half of the race, forcing his retirement from the race.

Following an action-packed Singapore Grand Prix, Formula One headed to the Black Sea resort town of Sochi - home of the 2014 Winter Olympic Games - for the Russian Grand Prix.

With an ever-present threat of rain throughout the weekend, which ultimately stayed at bay, George performed admirably in qualifying, outpacing ROKiT Williams Racing team-mate Robert Kubica for the 16th time in 2019, this time by over one second.

Starting from 17th, George maintained his position over the course of the first lap, advancing to 14th place during the pit stop phase, with Kubica, Antonio Giovinazzi, Nico Hulkenberg and Pierre Gasly fitting fresh tyres.

Following a retirement for Sebastian Vettel, who stopped on track in Turn 15, George was elevated to 13th place and pitted under a Virtual Safety Car period on lap 28, swapping his race-starting Medium compound tyres for a fresh set of Softs.

Rejoining in 14th, George’s race came to a close in Turn 8, with a braking issue ending the Briton’s day in the barriers.
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George Russell - ROKiT Williams Racing Driver

“It was a disappointing Russian Grand Prix. The car was feeling good, and then all of sudden after the pitstop there was an issue and the next thing I knew, I was in the barrier.
It was a shame for the race to end like that as we were showing some strong pace.”

The 2019 Formula One season will continue on October 11-13 for the Japanese Grand Prix at the iconic Suzuka Circuit.

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Photographs Courtesy of XPB Images

Additional Press Content Courtesy of ROKiT Williams Racing

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