Why Russell’s Baku win was so impressive

The Azerbaijan Grand Prix was the sort of complete performance we expected to see a lot more of from George Russell this season. It was a thrilling race to watch as two drivers went toe to toe in the final dozen laps, but Russell’s nerve held as he put in his best performance of the year to keep Verstappen at bay.

For much of the weekend it looked as though Russell had the race in the bag. His pace was generally strong and he had team mate Kimi Antonelli on the ropes for once in the Mercedes comparison.

To be fair, Antonelli had started well in first practice before a hydraulic failure cost him track time in both of Thursday’s sessions and it seemed the championship leader never recovered from it.