‘It’s amazing to be back on the top step’ – Russell jubilant after hard-fought victory in Canada

Mercedes achieved their best weekend of the season so far at the hands of George Russell, who converted his pole position into a win ahead of Max Verstappen and Kimi Antonelli in a frenetic Canadian Grand Prix.

The Brackley outfit have struggled to consistently keep pace with their frontrunner rivals, but the cooler temperatures and smoother surface in Montreal played perfectly into their hands and helped Russell to secure his first pole and win of the year.

READ MORE: Russell takes solid victory as Piastri and Norris collide late on in dramatic Canadian Grand Prix

He controlled the race from lights out, executing a two-stop strategy after enduring some early pressure from the lead Red Bull, with Verstappen never allowing the Briton too much breathing room throughout the 70 laps.

Although he expected more of a challenge from the championship leader, Oscar Piastri was ultimately restricted to P4 after Antonelli passed him on the opening lap, and a late collision with Lando Norris meant that the race ended behind the Safety Car which confirmed Russell’s victory.

“It’s amazing to be back on the top step, obviously the last time for us was back in Vegas,” he later said. “I thought last year for us was a victory lost, and then obviously we got the victory today probably due to the incredible pole lap yesterday.

“So happy to see Kimi on the podium as well so it’s an amazing day for the team – thanks to everybody back at the factory who’s been working so hard to get us back fighting for victories. It feels good.”

RACE START: Watch the getaway in Montreal as Russell maintains the lead over Verstappen

Parts of the weekend echoed the 2024 Canadian Grand Prix, when the Mercedes driver also claimed pole position ahead of Verstappen, but tricky mixed weather conditions meant that he lost out and dropped back to P3.

This season’s redemption drive at the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve represents the team’s best result, with the 1-3 finish solidifying their second place status in the teams’ standings. Nevertheless, Russell was uncertain that the momentum will be carried forward to the next few rounds in Europe.

Asked whether anything fundamental had changed, he responded: “No, it’s a little bit cooler around here – we saw it last year here in Canada.

READ MORE: Wolff admits Russell ‘giving us all the reasons’ to sign new Mercedes deal after Canada pole

"I’d love to get our hopes up but I think the strength of our car is in these cooler conditions. Let’s see going into the upcoming races, but we’ll just enjoy it for now.

“Time will tell. I mean we won Austria last year so maybe that’s a good omen, but we’ll enjoy it for the time being. We did have high expectations coming into this weekend and it worked out as we thought.”