Las Vegas GP: George Russell says power nap helped take pole

LAS VEGAS — In a race on a brutal driver schedule, George Russell said a 45-minute power nap helped him secure the pole for Mercedes at the Las Vegas Grand Prix.

The qualification started at 10 p.m. local time, a schedule that has left a grid of jet-lagged drivers struggling to properly manage their sleep patterns.

“I took a nap before qualifying,” Russell said. “Woke up a little bit drowsy and then made sure I was in top form when qualifying is over.

“It’s really hard, but we’re all in the same boat”.

Explaining it a little further, Russell added, “I would usually try to meditate as opposed to sleep, just close my eyes and listen to, I don’t know, waves crashing against the ocean or breathing exercises. I like to breathe, and it works for me.

“But yeah, today was probably 45 minutes. It’s just adjusting every weekend. When people ask me what your race weekend routine is, the routine changes every weekend depending on how you slept the night before, the circumstances you find And of course it’s so challenging for everyone to be so offset, to work effectively at night.

Mercedes had topped every practice session leading up to qualifying, but in recent rounds had seen their performance relative to the rest slip by that stage of the weekend.

Russell ensured that was not the case this time around, taking his third pole of the year and Mercedes’ first since the British Grand Prix in July.

“Incredibly satisfying,” Russell said. “Especially knowing that the car has been so fast all weekend, as a team we have topped every single session. Nevertheless, when you get to Q3, you know that what has happened beforehand has no one like preferably influence. So the pressure is increased in a way.”

On where the pace came from, Russell said: “I’d love to tell you to be honest. It’s been a real surprise to all of us and it’s something we really have to go through because this is an outlier circuit. We haven’t done anything out of the ordinary specifically for Vegas, but for whatever reason the layout works in our favor and I’m scratching my head a little.

Mercedes had looked to be in contention for a front-row lockout, but Russell’s team-mate Lewis Hamilton failed to muster a lap in Q3 and finished 10th.

“I just didn’t get the job done, the car felt different in Q3 and the stability wasn’t there for some reason,” Hamilton said. “But I had it in other sessions. But in the end I didn’t put the laps together.”

Asked if it hurt not to have converted Mercedes’ pace, Ferrari-bound Hamilton said: “Not really because I feel great. I wish I was on pole, George is on pole and it’s great for the team, it’s not a stinger.

“Look, I got three jumps on it, two more pops in the next runs and see how it goes. The good thing is I have pace.”