Russell takes responsibility for Verstappen Las Vegas collision

George Russell believes a potential podium was "thrown away" as he conceded fault for the Las Vegas Grand Prix collision with Max Verstappen that earned him a time penalty.

The duo were battling for position midway through the race when contact was made as Verstappen attempted to overtake Russell at Turn 12 on Lap 26.

Verstappen damaged his front wing but managed to seal the victory while Russell was deemed at fault for the contact and issued a five-second time penalty.

Russell eventually crossed the line in fourth place after a late race surge but the penalty dropped him back to eighth place, behind team-mate Lewis Hamilton.

Reflecting on the incident, Russell simply said that he did not see Verstappen in the mirrors.

No overganging damage

"It was pretty straightforward [during the race] until the incident with Max," Russell told media including RacingNews365.

"I just totally didn't see him in the blind spot. I wasn’t expecting an overtake. I wasn't even really fighting him because we knew that Max wasn’t in our race.

"We just had to keep the tyres alive. It was a comfortable podium just thrown away once again.

"This season has been really disappointing and very frustrating. Now heading to Abu Dhabi. [there's] only a few points between us and Ferrari (four)."

Russell also added that the contact didn't have detrimental consequences for his car performance.

"The only piece of damage was the wheel cover which probably would've helped the graining by having that extra bit of cooling," Russell said.

"So if it wasn't for the Safety Car we would have continued and would have got onto the podium.

“I don't really know what to say, I'm just really frustrated [for the race], and [for] the season, I can’t really catch a break."