George Russell out of championship battle after a terrible sprint race at the US Grand Prix

Mercedes is having a terrible weekend at this year's United States Grand Prix where they are known to dominate in the past. Both their drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell are struggling with their balance. The qualifying is complete with Lando Norris finishing at the pole ahead of Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz. Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell’s championship-winning chances are very bleak.

Mercedes has become the fourth team on the grid behind Red Bull, McLaren, and Ferrari. Their Sprint race was terrible as George Russell who started on second was quickly pushed back behind Charles Leclerc to fifth. After yesterday's sprint race now George Russell’s mathematical chances of winning the championship is out of sight. He can now only score a maximum of 331 points. The championship leader Max Verstappen is already sitting at the top with 339 points.

Terrible start by Russell

Russell started P2 in the sprint race but a poor start and opening lap blunder have cost him positions to Lando Norris, Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc. He finished P5 after fighting hard with Lando Norris to catch back his lost position.

Now both Mclaren drivers Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, Ferrari drivers Carlos Saniz and Charles Leclerc and George Russell’s teammate Lewis Hamilton are the few contenders for the world title. But out of these, only Lando Norris has a good chance of winning the championship this year.

Max Verstappen is now 54 points ahead of Norris. During the sprint race, Ferrari’s and Red Bull's are quicker when compared with McLaren’s. Norris struggled against the two Ferraris during the closing stages of the sprint race and finished 3rd behind Carlos Sainz.

The past couple of years have been very rough for the Mercedes team as they were not a dominant force anymore like they were before 3 years. After 2021 Red Bull completely started dominating the championship with Max Verstappen winning most races of the season. 

Also Read: US Grand Prix: Lando Norris to start from P1 ahead of Max Verstappen, Hamilton to start from P18 - Results