Juan Pablo Montoya expressed his belief that Mercedes compromised George Russell's chances of winning the Italian Grand Prix by not executing a double-stack pit stop during a virtual safety car period. Russell was leading the race at the time, but the strategy allowed Kimi Antonelli, who had pitted, to recover from 19th on the grid and ultimately win the race.
Team principal Toto Wolff defended the strategy, stating that the two-stop strategy was the best option and that Russell was on hard tires, which limited his options. Despite the criticism, Wolff expressed satisfaction with the team's 1-2 finish, highlighting Antonelli's impressive performance.
via RacingNews365George Russell confirms F1 grid penalty decisionGeorge Russell has announced that he is expected to take a grid penalty later in the Formula 1 season, which could further diminish his championship hopes. After the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, he finds himself significantly trailing teammate Kimi Antonelli, who recently secured his seventh win of the season after starting from the back of the grid due to a penalty for new engine components.
Russell's potential penalty is likely to occur in either the Azerbaijan or United States Grands Prix, where overtaking is more feasible. Despite his struggles, Russell has shown strong performance, consistently finishing in the top three during the Monza weekend and previously qualifying well at Zandvoort.
Tue 8 Sep · 11:50 UTC
via Motorsport.comJuan Pablo Montoya: Mercedes should have double-stacked George Russell and Kimi Antonelli at Monza
