Russell: Hamilton exposed scale of Mercedes F1 'beast’

George Russell has stated Mercedes is dealing with a “beast” as it continues to struggle with its W15 challenger.

Russell enjoyed a strong US Grand Prix on Sunday as he rose to sixth place after starting from the pit lane.

The Briton switched to an older specification of parts after crashing during qualifying but had strong pace during the race to score points.

“Definitely pleased with today, no doubt,” Russell stated. “Starting from the pitlane, not really sure what we were going to have during the race, and especially going back to a floor that we ran in Canada 10 races ago, more I guess.

“To end up P6 ahead of a Red Bull as well, that was really great. Obviously you always question what could have been, but we’re dealing with a difficult car at the moment.”

Russell enjoyed a much stronger weekend than team-mate Lewis Hamilton, who was also forced to line up at the back of the field after a difficult qualifying.

The seven-time world champion's grand prix lasted only a handful of minutes after he spun into the gravel at Turn 19.

Russell insisted Hamilton's struggles showcase the “beast” Mercedes is currently dealing with.

“Lewis [Hamilton] never really makes any mistakes and you saw [on Sunday] he had the exact same thing as what happened to me [on Saturday]. 

“That’s the beast we’re dealing with right now.”