Russell pleased with maiden Williams test

George Russell says that he is happy with how his first run with Williams went. The Briton took part in the post-season Pirelli test at the Yas Marina Circuit with the team he will be racing with full-time in 2019.

Russell handled driving duties in the morning, completing 36 laps before handing the car over the teammate Robert Kubica. The 2018 Formula 2 champion has been embedding himself within the Grove squad since he signed a race deal, and says he was happy to get his first outing ahead of his maiden F1 season.

“My feeling was very positive to be honest,” Russell said.“After the first two runs, I had some issues with the balance and I wanted to change and play around with, but once we sorted that I was very confident in the car.

“I had a good feeling to keep on pushing forward and explore the limit, and I think as a driver, that’s really important to have that confidence in the car. Once we got the setup right, I had it,” Russell added.

Russell has driven the Mercedes and Force India 2018 cars, but says that it is difficult to make comparisons regarding the 2019 prototype tyres that Pirelli was running with at the test.

"It’s difficult to judge because obviously every Formula 1 car is very different, and I’ve only experienced 2018 tyres with a Mercedes and a Force India,” he said. “I think Robert will have more feedback when he jumps in the car this afternoon.”

However, Russell was pleased that he was able to offer more feedback that will be useful for 2019: “I have more input to give what I would like for next season, whereas before with Mercedes or Force India, we were there to do exact test items and get the most out for the team.

“This is a bit of both, and it’s really good for me to understand just little things like the seat, the steering wheel, just to see how I like it and anything I want to change," Russell concluded.