George Russell Leads Canadian GP Practice Session with Mercedes

George Russell topped the timesheet in second practice of Formula 1 Canadian GP — leading his fellow Brit Lando Norris by a mere 0.028 seconds.

Russell, using the C5 medium tires, managed to outpace Norris who was running on softer C6 compounds. “This might be my first time at the top this year after 10 races,” he stated.

“We know our weakness is in hot conditions. When it’s cold and the tires run cold, we’re quite competitive — that was validated today. My lap was really strong, probably optimized with nothing more left in the tank,” Russell explained.

Mercedes’ success was reinforced by rookie Kimi Andrea Antonelli finishing third — 0.288 seconds behind Russell. The Italian newcomer expressed satisfaction with his W16 car’s balance.

Despite the positive results, Russell acknowledges the competition with Norris will intensify heading into the race. Tire strategy will be crucial — particularly the decision between soft or medium compounds during qualifying.