Lewis Hamilton asked about George Russell’s performance: “Nothing to do with me"

Russell was briefly promoted to a podium-finish due to the chaos around Fernando Alonso’s 10-second penalty, before it was rescinded and the Aston Martin took back the P3 that he earned on-track.

But, P4 for Russell coupled with a decent qualifying stint (he started from third) represented a small step forwards for Mercedes whose 2023 has so far been summarised by major problems with the W14’s competitiveness.

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Hamilton was asked about Russell’s podium-finish, before it was downgraded, and the interviewer said: “You must be happy about that?”

But he replied: “Well, it’s nothing to do with me. But it’s good for the team, sure.”

His response may have been influenced by an obvious frustration at the W14, and its limitations compared to the dominant Red Bull duo's RB19.

Hamilton was outperformed by Russell both in qualifying and during the grand prix in Jeddah.

The seven-time F1 champion finished fifth but couldn’t get past Russell despite ending the race on soft tyres.

• Russell clarifies Mercedes team radio “confusion”: ‘I didn’t want to fight…’

Hamilton told Sky that he used the wrong set-up while Russell profited from a better direction.

“There was like a 50-50 choice,” he said. “I chose one way and he chose another. 

“More often than not, the way he went is the wrong one. But it just happened to work. 

"So I could only match his pace [rather] than be quicker this weekend. But I’ll work hard to make sure we are in a better place next time.” 

Russell finished ahead of Hamilton in the F1 standings in 2022, and earned Mercedes’ sole win of the year in Brazil.