George Russell excited for Singapore Grand Prix ‘challenge’ despite haze, grid penalty

The Mercedes Formula 1 driver tells CNA he is “very excited” about this weekend’s Singapore Grand Prix, despite having to start from the back of the grid due to a penalty.

Formula One driver George Russell speaking to CNA on Oct 8, 2026. (Photo: CNA/Mak Jia Kee)

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SINGAPORE: Mercedes Formula 1 driver George Russell faces the uphill task of starting from the back of the grid at the Singapore Grand Prix, but said he is up for the “challenge”.

Speaking to CNA at an Adidas event on Thursday (Oct 8), Russell said that he remains “very excited” going into the weekend.

“Unfortunately, we've got to take an engine penalty because of the (engine) failure we had in Malaysia,” he said.

“It's not a circuit that is known for lots of overtaking, but that's a challenge I'm looking forward to.”

CNA Games Guess Word Crack the word, one row at a time Buzzword Create words using the given letters Mini Sudoku Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser Mini Crossword Small grid, big challenge Word Search Spot as many words as you can Show More Show Less At the Bahrain Grand Prix held in Sepang, Malaysia last weekend, Russell's title hopes took a hit when his podium-bound Mercedes ended the race prematurely with a power unit failure five laps from the finish. The retirement means second-placed Russell is now 84 points behind teammate Kimi Antonelli in the drivers’ standings. Mercedes boss Toto Wolff later confirmed that Russell received a power unit penalty. “That is particularly frustrating given the way he drove last weekend and the result he deserved to be fighting for,” said Wolff. “Unfortunately, these things are part of the sport and our focus now is on giving him the best possible car and opportunities to fight back through the field.”

At the Bahrain Grand Prix held in Sepang, Malaysia last weekend, Russell's title hopes took a hit when his podium-bound Mercedes ended the race prematurely with a power unit failure five laps from the finish.

The retirement means second-placed Russell is now 84 points behind teammate Kimi Antonelli in the drivers’ standings.

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff later confirmed that Russell received a power unit penalty.

“That is particularly frustrating given the way he drove last weekend and the result he deserved to be fighting for,” said Wolff.

“Unfortunately, these things are part of the sport and our focus now is on giving him the best possible car and opportunities to fight back through the field.”

Another challenge will be the hazy conditions, with air quality in Singapore currently in the "unhealthy" range on Thursday.

Earlier in the day, the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) announced there might be "some restrictions" on outdoor activity such as entertainment during this weekend's Grand Prix.

“I haven't noticed it too much, to be honest. I know it's obviously more of a haze than (it is) usually,” said Russell.

“Singapore at the best of times is very tough physically driving because of the heat, the humidity, (and the) street track. But ... it's the same for everyone, and we'll power through.”

Mercedes driver George Russell of Britain kisses his trophy as he celebrates after winning the Singapore Formula One Grand Prix at the Marina Bay Street Circuit in Singapore, Sunday, Oct. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)

SINGAPORE “ALWAYS SPECIAL”

Regardless of his current circumstances, Singapore is a place with happy memories for Russell, as the British driver took victory last year from pole position.

“It's always special coming to Singapore. Obviously, we won the race here last year. It's such a beautiful city. The race is amazing. So it's always a very special feeling to return,” he said.

“Singapore is a circuit that is extremely iconic. I put it in the same category as Monaco and Vegas and your home race. So to get a victory here, having the fireworks go off after the race, they are memories and images that will stay with me forever.”

This year's race takes place from Oct 9 to Oct 11. The Marina Bay circuit will host one of six sprint races on the F1 calendar this year, with sprint qualifying happening on Friday, the sprint race taking place on Saturday and the Grand Prix a day later.

A F1 sprint race covers about one-third of a typical Grand Prix distance, with no mandatory pit stops. Points are award to the first eight cars to finish, from eight points down to one.

"I love street circuits. This is a track that requires a lot of commitment. You're close to the walls, you're racing at night, which is an added excitement and a different element to a lot of races we drive on," said Russell.

"The only big difference this year is it's a sprint race. So straight away, already on Friday, you're into qualifying. Usually on a street track, you're building up to it more progressively over the course of the practice session, so that's going to be cool."

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这位梅赛德斯一级方程式赛车手告诉亚洲新闻台，尽管由于受到处罚不得不从发车格的最后一位起跑，但他对本周末的新加坡大奖赛仍然“非常兴奋”。

一级方程式赛车手乔治·拉塞尔于2026年10月8日接受亚洲新闻台采访。（图片：亚洲新闻台/麦嘉琪）

这段音频由人工智能工具生成。

新加坡：梅赛德斯一级方程式车手乔治·拉塞尔在新加坡大奖赛上面临着从发车格最后一位起跑的艰巨任务，但他表示他已准备好迎接这一“挑战”。

周四（10 月 8 日），拉塞尔在阿迪达斯活动上接受 CNA 采访时表示，他对即将到来的周末仍然“非常兴奋”。

“很遗憾，由于我们在马来西亚的比赛中引擎故障，我们不得不接受引擎处罚，”他说。

“这条赛道并不以超车多而闻名，但我很期待这种挑战。”

CNA游戏 猜词游戏 逐行破解单词 流行词游戏 用给定的字母组成单词 迷你数独 小谜题，脑力挑战 迷你填字游戏 小方格，大挑战 单词搜索 尽可能多地找出单词 显示更多 显示更少 上周末在马来西亚雪邦举行的巴林大奖赛上，拉塞尔的夺冠希望遭受重创，他原本有望登上领奖台的梅赛德斯赛车在距离终点还有五圈时因动力单元故障提前退赛。这次退赛意味着排名第二的拉塞尔在车手积分榜上落后队友基米·安东内利84分。梅赛德斯车队领队托托·沃尔夫随后证实，拉塞尔受到了动力单元处罚。“考虑到他上周末的表现以及他本应争取到的成绩，这尤其令人沮丧，”沃尔夫说。“不幸的是，这些都是这项运动的一部分，我们现在的重点是为他提供最好的赛车，并创造机会让他重新夺回领先位置。”

上周末在马来西亚雪邦举行的巴林大奖赛上，拉塞尔的夺冠希望遭受打击，他原本有望登上领奖台的梅赛德斯赛车在距离终点还有五圈时因动力单元故障提前退赛。

拉塞尔的退赛意味着排名第二的拉塞尔在车手积分榜上落后队友基米·安东内利84分。

梅赛德斯车队领队托托·沃尔夫随后证实，拉塞尔受到了动力单元处罚。

沃尔夫说：“考虑到他上周末的驾驶方式以及他本应争取到的结果，这尤其令人沮丧。”

“很遗憾，这些都是这项运动的一部分，我们现在的重点是给他提供最好的赛车和机会，让他能够奋起直追。”

另一个挑战是雾霾天气，新加坡周四的空气质量目前处于“不健康”级别。

当天早些时候，国际汽车联合会（FIA）宣布，本周末大奖赛期间，户外活动（如娱乐活动）可能会受到“一些限制”。

“说实话，我并没有太注意到。我知道现在的雾气明显比平时要浓一些，”拉塞尔说道。

“新加坡即使在最好的情况下，由于炎热、潮湿以及街道赛道的缘故，对驾驶来说也是一项非常艰巨的任务。但是……这对每个人都一样，我们会坚持下去。”

2025年10月5日星期日，在新加坡滨海湾街道赛道举行的F1新加坡大奖赛上，英国梅赛德斯车手乔治·拉塞尔赢得比赛后亲吻奖杯庆祝。（美联社照片/Vincent Thian）

新加坡“始终特别”

无论他目前的处境如何，新加坡对拉塞尔来说都是一个充满美好回忆的地方，这位英国车手去年从杆位发车并最终赢得了比赛。

“每次来新加坡都感觉很特别。去年我们在这里赢得了比赛。这座城市太美了，比赛也精彩绝伦。所以每次回到这里都感觉很特别，”他说。

“新加坡赛道极具标志性。在我看来，它与摩纳哥、拉斯维加斯以及主场比赛一样重要。所以，能够在这里赢得比赛，赛后还有烟花绽放，这些记忆和画面将永远铭刻在我的心中。”

今年的比赛将于 10 月 9 日至 11 日举行。滨海湾赛道将承办今年 F1 赛历上的六场冲刺赛之一，冲刺赛排位赛将于周五举行，冲刺赛将于周六举行，大奖赛将于一天后举行。

F1短程赛的赛程约为标准大奖赛的三分之一，且没有强制进站。前八名完赛的赛车将获得积分，积分从八分到一分不等。

“我喜欢街道赛道。这条赛道需要投入大量精力。你离赛道边缘很近，而且是在夜间比赛，这增添了额外的刺激感，也与我们参加的许多其他比赛有所不同，”拉塞尔说道。

“今年最大的不同之处在于这是一场冲刺赛。所以周五一开始就要进行排位赛。通常在街道赛道上，你会通过练习赛逐步积累经验，所以这将会很酷。”

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