George Russell: F1 in Canadian GP “Nothing in Tank” in FP2 “

George Russell F1 accepts his revision-topping run during the second exercise in Canadian Grand Prix Mercedes,

Britain only led the leaderboard in second practice by 0.028s Compatably Lando Noris,

But Russell, who says that his car benefited from cooler temperature in Montreal, says he was driving on the border.

Russell set his chart-topping FP2 time on C5 medium tires, while Noris was running the most soft C6 compound.

The 2024 Canadian GP Polester said: “It is good to be (on top). It can be my first time in the entire year leaderboard, 10 races!

“Clearly a very positive day. We had hopes coming later this week due to the position of the cooler later this week, the track is quite smooth, so the tires go naturally cool.

“We know our weakness, which happens when it is hot. We struggle when it cools down and tires go on cold. We are very competitive, so today there was definitely a recognition.

“Nevertheless, we are trying to maximize at the end of this week. I think my lap was really strong today, perhaps customized.

“There was nothing else in the tank. We had all the tables, full beans, power and everyone else. Let’s see what brings.”

Despite being satisfied with Friday’s practice, Russell knows that Noris will offer him a stifer test in the Sunday race. McLaren Man reduces his loss for team partner Oscar piastry,

Noris, which is 10 points behind the piastry, is eyeing his third win of the season and Russell believes that the tire strategy will be important.

Russell said: “Many teams clearly are also thinking about this medium tires. So, get merit, do you go soft, do you go to medium?

“This is one of the challenges so far when we had this C6 complex. I am sure that he (Noris) will be early. He is a championship favorite. He is always very fast, so it is difficult to defeat this man.”

Underlining the promise of the Mercedes team in Canada, Ruki Kimi Andrea Antoneley finished third on Friday, 0.288s on the third position behind his team partner Russell.

Italian happy with his better understanding of C6 and welcomed the confidence-motivation balance of his W16 car.

“For us, of course, the car is very attached,” Antoneley commented. “It gives you confidence, so it is most important. Hopefully, we can keep only one speed in tomorrow.”