Russell slams 'not very F1' Bahrain GP after power unit failure ends podium bid

George Russell delivered a sharp rebuke of Formula 1’s growing technical complexity after the Bahrain Grand Prix at Sepang’s Sepang International Circuit, calling the heavily disrupted race ‘not very F1’ following a power unit failure on lap 50 that ended his podium challenge.

The Mercedes driver had been firmly in contention for a top-three finish before the sudden retirement, which deepened what has already been a difficult season. Russell now trails team-mate and championship leader Kimi Antonelli by 84 points in the standings.

The day’s troubles began well before Russell’s retirement. Heavy rainfall pushed the start back by roughly an hour and 20 minutes, and when the formation lap eventually got under way, multiple cars were hit by a software bug that prevented power from being redeployed in wet conditions, bringing several cars almost to a standstill and forcing further delays.

FIA single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis acknowledged the failure, saying: “There was a bit of a concertina effect between cars, and some cars almost stopped completely. That bug prevented the power from being redeployed and for the cars to start again. If we had had a bit more testing, we probably would have managed to catch it in time, and not to have such a situation.”

Speaking to the media after the race, Russell was candid about his frustration with the day as a whole. “The whole day felt like a bit of a faff with the delay and then the red flag and then endless laps under the safety car and then suddenly doing extra laps to allow Checo to overtake,” the 28-year-old said. “It just didn’t feel very F1 today. And I’d have been a bit disappointed if I was in the stands watching that unfold.”

Russell also used the occasion to question the direction of the sport’s engineering philosophy. “It’s all just so complicated. The power units are exceptionally complicated. The more complicated you make things, the more there is to go wrong. So that is obviously something we need to bear in mind for the future.”

While he described his own retirement as “very disappointing”, Russell’s broader criticism points to a wider concern about reliability and spectacle at a time when Mercedes is already fighting to close the gap to the front of the championship.