George Russell suffered his latest gut punch in the 2026 Formula 1 season after contact with Lewis Hamilton ended his Belgian Grand Prix on the opening lap, but he was more “angry” at the lack of battery charge that left him a sitting duck on the Kemmel straight.
Russell started third at Spa-Francorchamps, but was swallowed by the chasing pack on the long uphill blast from Raidillon to Turn 5’s Les Combes.
After being easily passed by Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, Russell also came under threat from Hamilton, who took the inside into the right-hander. But the Ferrari driver understeered into Russell’s right rear corner to tip the Briton into the gravel and ended his race on the spot.
A frustrated Russell explained his Mercedes battery failed to recharge as he braked into the La Source hairpin at the start, which left him vulnerable to challenges from behind in the first place.
“I made a good start. I made a great first corner and I was tucked up right behind Verstappen, but for whatever reason, the battery decided not to recharge at Turn 1,” Russell told media, including Autosport.
“The battery didn’t charge and I exited the first corner 35% down. And because it didn’t charge, I also had a boost problem. The turbo didn’t sort itself out, so I had no power. I got to the top of Eau Rouge with 0% on the battery. Quite frankly, it was dangerous. I got swamped by three cars.
“I shouldn’t have been in that position in the first place. That’s why I’m the most angry.”
George Russell, Mercedes
Photo by: Sam Bloxham / LAT Images via Getty Images
Hamilton received a five-second penalty for causing the collision, but Russell was less upset by the contact than by the power unit trouble that led up to it.
“Me and Lewis, honestly, I think it was a race incident,” Russell said. “He didn’t do it on purpose. He was more to blame than I was. But he didn’t do anything reckless.
“That was one of those things I was most angry about, that I was in that position in the first place. I was in a great position after Turn 1. I was ready to fight the two guys ahead of me up to Turn 5. Instead, I got swamped by three drivers.”
When asked by Autosport how he is dealing with his latest setback after a rollercoaster 2026 campaign thus far, he replied: “I’m numb to the disappointment now. When it happens so often, you just get used to it.”
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– The Autosport.com Team
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