"I did everything right" - George Russell defends disputed Austrian pole lap

George Russell maintained "I did everything right" after improving his qualifying time to take pole position at the Formula 1 Austrian Grand Prix, despite yellow flags being displayed during the effort.

The Mercedes driver set a stunning 1m06.133s effort to deny Ferrari a front-row lock-out at the Red Bull Ring as he scored a fourth pole position of the season. 

But questions were immediately raised as to whether the effort would stand, given he had set the time while passing through a section of track where yellow flags were being displayed after Max Verstappen had crashed at Turn 9. Team-mate Kimi Antonelli slowed and was ready to stop, as is the requirement for double-waved yellows, but remarkably, only single yellows were on display at the high-speed corner that has caught out a long list of drivers in the past.

"I didn't even see the car because the runoff is so far," said Russell.

"I think in that instance, a single yellow was correct, because a double yellow is immediate danger. You're never going to be lifting 100 meters before a corner or lifting off with a single yellow, you're never going to lose control of the car. 

"You know, Verstappen, the only reason he was in the wall that far away is because he was attacking and lost the car. So, you know, I think the single yellow was correct. I think I did everything right to be very much under control, and it's a very different story to a double."

The timing screen only added to the confusion, with the area of track briefly under double waved yellows, although this period was between 17:00:45-17:00:53 only. As Russell went through the zone at 17:00:35, he was clear of an infraction by 10-seconds, meaning he only needed to demonstrate that he had lifted. 

The time put Russell two tenths clear of Charles Leclerc in second, and three tenths ahead of Antonelli, although the Italian had been on an improved lap himself before bailing out. 

Asked where the pace had come from after a relatively steady qualifying to that point, Russell conceded: "If I had the answer, we'd be on pole every week, to be honest. 

"It's I said on Thursday, it's like when the car clicks and the tyres work and it just gets into that sweet spot, a huge amount of lap time comes from nowhere. And I had a really difficult session. 

"I was almost out in Q2. My first lap in Q3 was strong. And then I just went round turn one on my final lap, and I was a tenth and a half up. Then turn three, another tenth and a half up, and turn four, another tenth and a half. The lap was unbelievable. 

"Then, obviously, I got that yellow flag and a single yellow in the last sector. But I did a 100-meter lift, lost a huge amount of time, and still... I don't know. I don't have the answer for sure. I'll be looking with my team where it came from, but it felt very, very sweet."