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George Russell showcased his racing prowess by taking his third Formula 1 Grand Prix victory in Las Vegas, even as Max Verstappen secured his fourth consecutive championship. The win cements Russell’s position as a key contender aiming to dethrone Verstappen in the 2025 season.
The 26-year-old Briton delivered a dominant performance in Sin City, securing pole position and leading the race from start to finish. Despite late pressure from his Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton, who reduced the gap to seven seconds, Russell maintained control. “I was just managing my tyres in the final stint,” Russell explained. “The pace was there, but it was all about being smart and bringing it home.”
Russell’s 2024 campaign has been marked by consistency and resilience. While he has only notched four podium finishes this season, he has frequently extracted the maximum potential from an unpredictable Mercedes car. “It’s been a challenging year, but results like this show what we’re capable of,” Russell said.
Beyond the track, tensions simmered between Russell and Verstappen. Motorsport Netherlands reporter Ronald Vording highlighted a disagreement stemming from drivers’ briefings earlier in the season. According to Vording, Russell had claimed that the grid was nearly unanimous in wanting changes, leaving Verstappen as the lone dissenting voice.
“Russell said 19 drivers think this should be different and one does not,” Vording reported. “With that, he pointed a bit to Max Verstappen.”
However, Verstappen rejected this characterization. “That is actually not right,” Verstappen said during media day at the Qatar Grand Prix. “It wasn’t 19 against one at all. It’s not true that I was the only one who disagreed.”
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