George Russell wary of Canada 'curveball' in race win pursuit

George Russell is wary of the curveballs the Canadian Grand Prix can throw at drivers as he looks to clinch his first victory of the year.

Russell bagged pole position for the Montreal race, narrowly edging out Max Verstappen to the top spot.

Mercedes has looked competitive throughout the weekend in Canada, a major step forward from its difficult campaign to date.

However, the race around the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve has rarely been a straightforward event due to unpredictable weather and the close nature of the walls always threatening a safety car.

Having missed out on a win in Canada last year after starting from pole, Russell is seeking to ensure history does not repeat itself.

“In Montreal, you just can’t discount the weather or things happening on track,” Russell told media including RacingNews365. “It’s a street track. 

“You’ve got to fight until the last lap of the race. Last year was a poor race for me, and I felt it could’ve gone differently. 

“So obviously I’ll be doing my best to make up for last year’s losses. But it’s totally different this year.”

There are also further unknowns surrounding the tyre strategy, with the three softest compounds in the Pirelli range in use at Montreal.

“As we said before, we don’t know how the race is going to pan out because the hard tyre is the one that we’re all going to use at some point in the race, and no one knows if that would do the distance to give you a one-stop or not,” Russell added.

“So, there’s that curveball in there.”