SEPANG: George Russell insisted his worst grid position of the year for Sunday's Bahrain Grand Prix "is not the be all and end all" – a week after his brilliant win in Azerbaijan had provided him with a foothold in the world championship race, PA Media/dpa reported.
Russell took 15 points out of leader Kimi Antonelli with his dominant triumph on the streets of Baku to trim his Mercedes teammate's title advantage to 66 with a possible 208 still remaining.
But he will start Sunday's rescheduled Manama round – which is being staged at Malaysia's Sepang International Circuit because of the conflict in West Asia – four positions behind his rival.
Max Verstappen claimed his first pole of the year and he will be joined on the front row by Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton. Isack Hadjar qualified third but he is relegated five places for taking on new engine parts. His sanction elevates Antonelli to third and Russell to seventh.
