Russell explains Mercedes' shock result in Austria qualifying after his pole position in Canada

Having failed to challenge for top positions in qualifying at the Austrian Grand Prix, Mercedes driver George Russell conceded that track conditions, high temperatures, track surface and the high-speed corners all contributed to the Brackley-based outfit's setback at the Red Bull Ring.

On the back of his pole position and victory at the Canadian Grand Prix, George Russell seemingly carried over his form to the Red Bull as he finished the opening session on Friday on top.

However, Mercedes were unable to challenge for top places on Saturday, with both McLaren and Ferrari having had the upper hand in qualifying.

The four-time Formula One race winner ended up in a distant fifth place, and he will be joined by Racing Bulls driver Liam Lawson on the third row. His team-mate Andrea Kimi Antonelli looked on par with Russell, but the Italian was affected by yellow flag brought out by Pierre Gasly's spin which saw him finish only ninth.

Reflecting on his qualifying performance, Russell noted: “It’s the way F1 goes, we know the strengths of our car and we had a really strong weekend in Canada. But, coming here, we knew we weren’t going to be that competitive, with the temperatures, with the high-speed corners.

“The tarmac’s very abrasive so the tyres are just having a hard time, and that’s when McLaren come into their own and we fall back. P5 is probably the maximum we could have done today in these conditions.

"The gap between Lando (Norris) and us is not really surprising. The McLarens have been doing a great job so far and I don’t think we will be able to challenge them tomorrow."

Signing off with a word for his expectations, Russell noted: "However, I think we do have a chance to fight with both Ferraris ahead and this is what we will be aiming for. Let’s see what we can do but fingers crossed we are in the battle for the podium.

“I think Max is generally pretty strong in these conditions, like Barcelona and in Imola, so he’ll probably be coming back through, and ultimately we’ve just got to try and almost [do] damage limitation."