P1racenews AI automatic summary:
George Russell explains his odd request for the final part of Italian Grand Prix qualifying.
George Russell has clarified the confusion surrounding his decision to run medium tyres in the final part of qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix, despite initially expressing a preference for them after topping Q1. He ended up starting sixth but moves up to fifth due to Lewis Hamilton’s grid penalty. Russell stated he felt more comfortable on mediums and was left frustrated when the team put him on softs for Q3. He admitted to some lack of clarity in his communication with the team but acknowledged the overall performance was not up to par in Q3. Russell acknowledged Ferrari’s strong straight-line speed and noted the need to get ahead of Leclerc early in the race to avoid being stuck behind him. Kimi Antonelli achieved his best qualifying result since the Canadian Grand Prix, finishing seventh behind his teammate Russell. The Italian rookie expressed his happiness with his performance but mentioned struggling with rear grip in the first two sectors. Antonelli admitted to feeling nervous before qualifying due to setbacks in practice but remains optimistic for the race. Overall, he sees room for improvement and aims to build on his qualifying success for a strong showing on Sunday.
