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George Russell believes the calm weather conditions showcased the strength of the Williams FW43B in the Spanish Grand Prix, describing the car as “the best it has ever felt” in Formula 1 race conditions.
The wind-sensitive Williams has proved difficult to drive at certain circuits, notably in the races in Bahrain and Portugal where gusty conditions made the car inconsistent thanks to its peaky downforce.
But after starting 15th at Barcelona, Russell emerged as an outside contender for points last weekend.
This was thanks to a pitstop under the early safety car at the end of the ninth lap, leaving Russell to run to the end with just one more stop.
As others made their second stops, Russell gained places and ran 10th for three laps before being relegated to 11th by McLaren driver Lando Norris with 11 laps left.
But he continued to pressure Fernando Alonso for the final points position until his Pirellis fell off the performance cliff four laps later and he was shuffled down to 14th place.
After the race, he mentioned over the radio that the result might have been different had he been able to pass Alonso given the strength of the Williams, although he later admitted the DRS acquired from the Alpine had also likely helped him to hold off faster cars for longer.
“We did a really great job pitting under the safety car at the beginning and effectively almost doing a one stop,” said Russell when asked by The Race about his bid for points.
“Had I just managed to clear Alonso then who knows, but I think actually having him ahead of me helped keep those faster cars behind because I had the DRS. They had half-a-second of car pace [advantage] and probably one second of tyre pace.
“But all in all I think we did a really good job and the car felt the best it has ever felt, to be honest, in a race – probably the best I can ever remember.
“And that just makes it so joyous to a drive compared to normal, which I put down to just a calm day. We know the beast we have.”
“The times when we have been fast essentially came out of nowhere and the times we’ve struggled slightly more have also come out of nowhere” :: George Russell
The car’s performance was in stark contrast to the problems both Russell and team-mate Nicholas Latifi had in the previous Sunday’s Portuguese Grand Prix.
Then, despite hopes of challenging for a possible points finish, they dropped back with Russell describing the FW43B in the first part of the race as “undriveable”.
Russell believes that Williams makes gains relative to its rivals in F1’s midfield in more calm weather conditions, which boosted the performance in the Spanish GP.
“It was a calm and consistent day today, the wind was less than 10km/h, there were minimal gusts. It just made the car consistent to drive and when it’s consistent, you can drive it,” he said.
“That’s something Nicholas and I have really struggled with, especially in Portimao – that really exposed that it was just incredibly inconsistent.
“You lose all confidence, then it has a negative effect on the tyres and then you know you’re just in this downward spiral.
“When the car is nice and consistent, a driver can really push it to its limit, you can manage the car as you wish, manage the tyres as you wish and really optimise everything.
“I’m sure a lot of people felt like their car felt better today but I think we take a bigger jump in both directions when these conditions are favourable or not.”
Russell expects Williams to continue to be up and down in its form depending on the conditions.
While he has a 100% record of reaching Q2 in the four races so far this season, the Sundays have been more variable.
But he is unsure where the Williams FW43B is likely to be strong again, particularly with the next two tracks in Monaco and Baku offering very different challenges.
“It’s difficult to predict how we will be in the upcoming races,” said Russell.
“The times when we have been fast essentially came out of nowhere and the times we’ve struggled slightly more have also come out of nowhere.
“Obviously, Monaco is a completely different ballgame, Azerbaijan is very different again. So, I honestly can’t tell you.”
