Russell rues difficult Friday as Mercedes searches for answers at Spa

George Russell admitted Mercedes endured a frustrating opening day at the Belgian Grand Prix after the Briton struggled with an unbalanced W17 and finished both practice sessions outside the top seven.

While team-mate Andrea Kimi Antonelli topped the timesheets in Friday's second practice session, Russell could manage only eighth in both FP1 and FP2, ending the day more than a second adrift of the Italian's benchmark lap.

Russell's Friday began with an eighth-place finish in the opening practice session after Mercedes appeared to be slightly off the pace. The team opted to fit the soft tyres relatively early in the session, a strategy that may have compromised its headline lap times, while Russell also lacked confidence in the balance of the car.

Reflecting on the opening day, the Briton admitted Mercedes had started the weekend on the back foot.

"We haven't had the smoothest Friday here in Spa," Russell said. "We overestimated the grip levels in FP1 and that meant our starting set-up wasn't in the right place."

The 2026 title contender explained that the incorrect initial setup left him fighting an unpredictable car throughout the first session.

"We struggled with a difficult car balance and, whilst we were able to complete some learning, it wasn't the ideal way to start our weekend."

Mercedes responded by making several setup changes before FP2, allowing Russell to feel more comfortable, although the improvements were not fully reflected on the timing screens. The Briton also reported excessive sliding during the session, limiting his ability to extract the maximum performance over a single lap.

"We therefore worked hard ahead of FP2 and made some changes which improved things," he said. "There is still more lap time we can find, particularly on the single lap, and we will look to do that overnight."

Despite his disappointing qualifying simulations, Russell was more encouraged by Mercedes' race pace, believing the team's longer runs offered a stronger indication of its potential for the remainder of the weekend.

"Our long run was more competitive and that gives us encouragement heading into Saturday and Sunday," concluded Russell.