Unreleased footage has revealed moments when George Russell shook after suffering from “heat exhaustion” in Singapore.
The unseen clips from the Singapore Grand Prix show Mercedes driver George Russell staggering as he walked through parc ferme at the end of the race. Russell, who started from the second row in qualifying, and his teammate Lewis Hamilton faced a challenging race in Marina Bay, finishing fourth and sixth, respectively. Both Mercedes drivers finished over a minute behind Lando Norris, who secured his third victory of the 2024 season, cutting Max Verstappen’s lead in the Drivers’ Championship to 52 points.
After the race, both drivers were exempt from media duties, and Mercedes confirmed in a statement on Sunday that they were trying to recover from the “fatigue of the evening’s race.” Team principal Toto Wolff later stated that the duo “did not feel well” and were suffering from “heat exhaustion or something similar.”
Mercedes then shared a clip on social media of a team member handing a smiling Russell and Hamilton a plate of food in the team’s hospitality area in the Marina Bay paddock.
In-car footage from Valtteri Bottas’s Sauber captured the end of the grueling 62-lap race, showing Russell staggering in parc ferme and briefly resting his hands on Bottas’s car and the tires of another parked vehicle on his left.
Russell then placed his hand on the left rear tire of Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari, which was parked just in front of him. The Singapore Grand Prix is considered one of the most physically demanding events on the F1 calendar due to the extremely hot conditions.
Since its debut in 2008 as F1’s first night race, the fastest race in Singapore’s history occurred in 2024, with Norris completing the race in one hour and 42 minutes due to the absence of Safety Car periods.
Driver health has been under scrutiny since last year’s Qatar Grand Prix, where Williams driver Logan Sargeant showed signs of heat exhaustion and had to retire, and Alpine driver Esteban Ocon vomited inside his helmet due to the conditions.
In response to these concerns, the FIA, F1’s governing body, approved cooling helmets for 2024 to help direct cool air into the cockpit. Hamilton and Russell have previously complained over team radio about the heat from their seats during various points of the 2024 season.
