Off to a strong start to the 2025 F1 season, the Imola GP turned out to be a rare disappointment for Mercedes driver George Russell in 2025. While he qualified in third, the British driver finished the race in a frustrating 7th position.
Unreliable Mercedes machinery hampers performance
In the opening laps of the Imola GP, the senior Mercedes driver sensed that something was off in his vehicle, though the team were unable to detect any issue.
“Yeah, very odd. On the laps of the grid, I was reporting problems with the car and I thought something was wrong. The team had a good look round and saw nothing and that feeling continued for 60 odd laps after.”
Emphasizing his disappointment, Russell stated: “[…] We had absolutely zero pace”.
Tyre instability impeded Mercedes’ performance
Recently, Mercedes have been struggling to keep their cars in the highest positions in hot weather. Unfortunately for Russell, Imola suffered hot weather with track temperature reaching 45 degrees.
Overheating the tyres has been a trend for Mercedes in recent times. Saudi Arabia, Miami and Imola have exposed those old fragilities once again.
“There’s clearly a trend when it’s hot. The track was really hot today.
“When it’s hot we’re nowhere and when it’s cold we’re quick. That was the trend last year, the same trend this year. So, yeah, we need to try and solve that.”
Russell summed up his feelings bluntly: “it didn’t feel quite right”.
Repeatedly overheating tyres
During the Imola GP, George Russell experienced unusual instability with his Mercedes car, particularly involving the rear tyres, which significantly affected his race performance.
“Yeah, well, it was just like my rear wheels were moving. So, we’ll review it. There was nothing obvious standing out but even in a straight line the car was moving around but the rear tyre [temperatures] were through the roof.
He explained how the rear wheels felt as if they were moving unpredictably, causing handling difficulties even on straight sections of the track. This problem, tied to overheating tyres, has been a recurring challenge for Mercedes, fluctuating between front and rear tyres depending on the circuit.
“So, you know, we do have a bit of a fundamental. It’s either the fronts are overheating or the rears are overheating. Circuit to circuit.
“But it’s not the first time we’ve reported that. So, it was probably just the first time where all of our rivals probably had a semi-decent race.”
With the Monaco GP around the corner where overtaking is impossible, Russell expressed cautious optimism, noting Mercedes’ strong qualifying pace: “Well, quali[fying] pace has been decent this year so that’s the only promising thing.”
Setbacks are part of racing
While disappointed, Russell remained realistic that one poor weekend does not define overall performance.
“Yeah, I think the fact is every team has a disastrous race weekend at some point. This is our first one of the season.
“Red Bull had a disastrous one in Bahrain. This is our sort of first one of the year. So, of course, I’m not very happy but […] your car isn’t going to be podium position week in, week out. That’s what we’ve been doing recently.”
He also highlighted how performance varies by track and tyre: “There’s no excuses. It’s just the reality of F1. You had all these different tracks, different tyre compounds, different temperatures but it was definitely very underwhelming.”
Surprise shifts in competitiveness
McLaren has been the frontrunner so far this season, though they lost the Imola victory to World Champion Max Verstappen – a development that caught Russell off guard.
“There’s always a bit of a surprise in F1. Some races you expect one team to be quick but it turns out in an opposite direction.”
Starting third, Russell had a strong launch, slotting in behind Piastri. However, he left an opening that Verstappen exploited to overtake both drivers as the Brit was not afraid to say on the radio.
“If you leave the door open, you know Max is going to take it and, you know, the door was open and he took it. So, that was a bit frustrating.
“I was obviously boxed in. I made a really strong start.
“But the track’s just too narrow for these big F1 cars these days. There’s nothing you can do.”
Despite a strong start to the season, Imola served as a stark reminder of Mercedes’ ongoing struggles in hot conditions and tyre management. While visibly frustrated, Russell remained composed, acknowledging that off-weekends are part of the sport. With Monaco looming, Russell’s focus now shifts to capitalizing on Mercedes’ one-lap pace and pushing for redemption.
