George Russell wants a repeat of Spanish GP result as Mercedes seek consecutive double podium 

George Russell has high expectations at the Canadian Grand Prix, which is to be held at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on Sunday, June 18.

The Briton has hopes for a double podium finish for Mercedes, a repeat from the Spanish GP that took place two weeks ago. The team seemed to have gotten better on pace with recent developments and upgrades. A double-podium finish, hence, might be possible in Canada as well.

"P5 is a good starting position and I see no reason why we can't fight for the double podium again," Russell said about Mercedes' hopes at Canada GP.

Mercedes, though expected to be stronger now, were a little behind during the final practice session on the track. George Russell was P15 and his teammate Lewis Hamilton was up on P10.

The British driver explained that this was because of the compounds they ran on. The practice session had gotten extremely wet by the end, and thus, the lap times were changed quite a bit.

"After practice, we probably would have taken P5 because we really struggled. When the track was dry we were more competitive and as it got wet we struggled," Russell said.

Achieving podium will certainly be a tough task from these positions for the two Mercedes drivers.

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George Russell and Hamilton at better starting positions after grid gets penalized

Even though Lewis Hamilton and George Russell qualified P4 and P5, they are now at much better starting positions. Kevin Magnussen, the Haas driver who had qualified P2 after a red flag caused the session to stop, was penalised by the FIA. This was done after he was found not slowing down after a red flag during the session.

The stewards gave him a three-place grid penalty, which puts him down to P5 on the starting grid. Hamilton will now start on P3 and his teammate on P4. The latter's hopes for a double podium can now be possible if they overtake the car ahead of them i.e., Fernando Alonso's Aston Martin.

The team is currently Mercedes' competitor in the standings for second place. The upgrades that the Brackley outfit brought in are expected to make them fight closer with Aston Martin.

Alonso, who has been on the podium five times this season already, is expecting a better finish in Canada. Interestingly, his team owner Lawrence Stroll, too, has hoped for a double podium.

This will put them right in front of George Russell's competition, and there could be an intense battle during the Canadian Grand Prix.