"He's been called by the stewards": George Russell addresses Fernando Alonso being investigated for the Mercedes driver's last-lap incident

George Russell is keeping a close eye on Fernando Alonso being investigated by the stewards for the Mercedes driver's last-lap crash, even if he did not commit to any judgment. The young driver was chasing down the F1 veteran in the last few laps and had both a tire advantage and a better car.

After a few failed attempts in the laps prior, Russell lost control of his Mercedes and spun his car. He encountered a severe crash where he was stuck upside down in his car.

However, what is interesting in all of this is the fact that during the podium ceremony, it was revealed that Alonso was called to the stewards. Talking about the incident, Russell did not allege that the Spaniard brake-checked him.

The Mercedes driver raised his hands on the spin that caused the crash. He did admit, however, that he was caught out by the sudden nature in which the entire thing happened.

Talking to Sky Sports, the Brit said:

"I'm not going to accuse him of anything until we see further. I was right behind him for many, many laps. I was half a second behind him before the corner"

He added:

"Then, suddenly he slowed up dramatically and got back on the power. I wasn't expecting it and he caught me by surprise. That part is on me. It's interesting he's been called by the stewards. I'm intrigued as to what they have to say."

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George Russell tries not to jump to any conclusions in the Fernando Alonso incident

Talking about the incident, George Russell admitted that he was largely to blame for his crash in the closing stages of the race. He did, however, find it bizarre that Fernando Alonso was called to the stewards and that the incident was being investigated.

Trying to explain what led to the incident, the Mercedes driver said that he was half a second behind the Aston Martin driver at one point, and then all of a sudden he was' right on his gearbox'. While such a situation could arise due to intentional slowing down by the driver in front, Russell stayed away from making any accusations.

The 26-year-old said:

"My take is I've gone off and that's on me. I was half a second behind Fernando 100m before the corner then suddenly he came towards me extremely quick and I was right on his gearbox. I don't know if he had a problem or not. He's off to the stewards and that's a bit bizarre in a circumstance like this."

He added:

"I've got nothing more to say right now. I need to see everything, just disappointed to end the race like that. It's clear he braked 100m before the corner and was back on the throttle again and took the corner normally. We've already seen the data of that."

George Russell was fighting Fernando Alonso for P6 in the race. The weekend overall was a disappointing one for Mercedes, and going home without a point (DNF for Lewis Hamilton due to Power Unit failure) is definitely not ideal for the team, who sit third in the Constructors' Championship.