George Russell accuses Ferrari of blocking F1 start procedure changes
Mercedes driver George Russell has accused Ferrari of being selfish by blocking proposed FIA changes to the Formula 1 starting procedure ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix.
The British driver claims the Italian constructor is deliberately preventing an alteration that would resolve severe battery depletion issues on the formation lap.
A quirk in the current regulations caught out several teams during the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, leaving drivers on the front half of the grid with a distinct launch disadvantage.
Protecting a competitive advantage
Despite ultimately securing a one-two finish in Melbourne alongside team-mate Kimi Antonelli, both Mercedes cars suffered sluggish getaways when the lights went out.
Conversely, the Scuderia enjoyed exceptional launches, allowing Charles Leclerc to seize the early lead while Lewis Hamilton rapidly advanced through the pack.
Closing this regulatory loophole requires a super majority agreement from the grid, which the 28-year-old insists is currently being strategically withheld.
“Unfortunately, sometimes when you’re trying to make changes for the good of the sport, if a team has a competitive edge – like Ferrari at the moment with the race starts – they wouldn’t wish to see anything changing,” Russell told Sky Sports F1.
Navigating unnecessary complications
Speaking to the written media in Shanghai, the Grand Prix Drivers’ Association director labelled the resistance as slightly absurd.
“The FIA was looking to potentially adjust that, but as you can imagine some teams who were making good starts didn’t want it, which I think is just a little bit silly,” he explained.
The former Williams racer remains confident that his engineering team can successfully mitigate the battery drain now that the underlying cause is thoroughly understood.
“I don’t think their gain is coming from this issue. Now all the teams know the problem, we’ll just drive around it.”
However, the regulatory dispute adds an extra layer of political tension as the paddock prepares for the first Sprint weekend of the 2026 campaign.
