Mercedes has confirmed that George Russell will miss the Azerbaijan Grand Prix media day due to illness.
The British driver will miss his media day duties to rest up ahead of the on-track action tomorrow for the first two practice sessions at the Baku City Circuit.
The Brackley outfit confirmed, “Unfortunately, George won’t be at track today because he’s feeling unwell and resting up ahead of tomorrow’s track action.”
No further updates have been issued at this stage.
Mercedes is looking to improve on performance following the Italian Grand Prix, and getting out for all of the practice sessions will be important for this. Russell crossed the line fifth in Monza and his team-mate Andrea Kimi Antonelli finished ninth.
“With the ‘European’ part of the year now complete, we begin the final third of the season this weekend,” team chief Toto Wolff explained in the Mercedes Azerbaijan Grand Prix preview.
“It will be an intense run to the flag in Abu Dhabi, with three teams in the fight for second in the Constructors’ Championship. We lost some ground to our competitors in Monza and know we need to perform better in the closing eight races than we did in Italy if we are to come out on top.”
He added, “The ‘flyaway’ races start with two street circuits. First up is Azerbaijan before we then head to Singapore in two weeks’ time.
George Russell, Mercedes
Photo by: Beata Zawrzel / NurPhoto via Getty Images
“The track in Baku is a challenging mix of high-speed straights, 90-degree corners and the tight, twisty castle section. It is a good test for both the car and the driver.”
Mercedes currently sits third in the constructors’ standings, 20 points behind Ferrari in second place and 21 points ahead of Red Bull in fourth.
“The grid is tight, and once again small margins will make a big difference. If we deliver in the way we know we can, then we can be hopeful of a strong weekend fighting near the front of the field,” he concluded.