George Russell was soaked after winning the Las Vegas Grand Prix in grand fashion. Had he jumped into the Fountains of Bellagio, the scene of the post-race celebrations?
No, and he mentioned a medical reason why not.
The Brit blamed champagne for his soggy overalls, revealing: ‘This time last year I got pneumonia after Vegas and Abu Dhabi and was ill until mid-February.
‘I really wanted to jump in the fountains, but I was so cold after the race that I thought I was going to get super sick again.
“I thought back to the struggles I had because it was such a toll on the body.”
Russell’s composed performance was worthy of his third career win. His Mercedes was inexplicably fast, but he used the advantage to devastating effect.
George Russell with the trophy after winning the Las Vegas Grand Prix in grand style, the third victory of his career
Russell says he considered jumping into Fountains of Bellagio, but changed his mind
He sailed clear of pole and survived the only wheel-to-wheel threat to his fortunes at the end of the fourth lap, holding off Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc with clinical precision and defiance.
His teammate Lewis Hamilton did very well from tenth on the grid – a poor qualifying performance from him – to finish second, passing three cars on track and the Ferraris in the pits.
“That was honestly one of the most fun races,” said the seven-time world champion, who recovered from his nightmare in Brazil a fortnight earlier when he struggled in the rain.
‘If I had started from pole and just been in the lead, it wouldn’t have felt so nice. Of course, winning a Grand Prix is always a great thing, but facing adversity and fighting through it feels so much better when you succeed.’
As for Russell’s victory when Max Verstappen secured the world title, it was a bad day to bury good news.