George Russell is driving brilliantly in Las Vegas and will start the 50-lap Grand Prix from pole position for Mercedes.
The British driver was faultless in the build-up to qualifying and put in a superb lap to start at the very front of the field for the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
Mercedes have been very quick throughout practice in Las Vegas, which is a significant improvement from the Sao Paulo Grand Prix last time out.
Lewis Hamilton was also on the pace on Friday but made a critical error in Q3, which means he will start from 10th place on the grid.
There was a very slight rule change with a technical directive heading into the weekend, and Ted Kravitz explained on Sky Sports F1 (23/11 8:37) that there is a rumour it may have helped Russell.
Ted Kravitz explained the technical directive around skid blocks may have helped Mercedes
A technical directive was brought in around the skid blocks on the cars, which are a key reason why the cars spark when hitting the ground.
The rule was originally meant to be introduced next season but was brought forward and may have affected some cars with three rounds to go.
Formula 1’s ground effect cars are very sensitive and the 10 teams need to run them as close to the track as possible to generate downforce.
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Kravitz explained that Ferrari may be the ones who have been hindered the most by the technical directive around the skid blocks.
He said: “It just seems to be that the Mercedes is fast. Has the Mercedes benefited from the technical directive about skid blocks, meaning that maybe some teams weren’t able to run their car low?
“That is a rumour around here. The suggestion is that Ferrari are the ones who’ve suffered most from that technical directive.
“Certainly, their team boss, Fred Vasseur, was the most annoyed about it, but I don’t think we can say definitively.”
Lewis Hamilton is continuing to struggle in qualifying at Mercedes
Mercedes started the weekend very well in practice as the team revelled in the cooler conditions of the Las Vegas Strip Circuit.
They also performed well in the cold at Silverstone as well as the Belgian Grand Prix, two races which Hamilton took victory at this year.
Mercedes apologised to Hamilton after slumping to 10th place in Q3 which sets up a more difficult Las Vegas Grand Prix for the seven-time world champion.
Hamilton is without a pole position and has only qualified on the front row once this season at the British Grand Prix.
