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Mercedes driver George Russell has spoken out on the current layout of the Formula One season.
Russell alongside other drivers has been calling for a better layout for the season which currently sees the drivers and teams travel around 84,000 miles a season.
The one-time race winner spoke about the concerns he has with the current calendar layout with men’s world number one tennis player Novak Djokovic.
In the original plan for the 2023 season, the next race was sent to take place in Shanghai, China this weekend, however, the race was called off due to complications with the current state of COVID-19 in the country.
In a video posted on the ATP Tour Twitter account, Russell can be seen having a conversation with Djokovic who asked about getting used to the amount of travel involved in Formula 1.
Russell replied saying it “probably takes a week,” for him to recover from the trip to Australia for the Melbourne Grand Prix, where there is a 10-hour time difference.
“We were meant to go to China next week but we’ve actually got a couple of weeks off,” continued Russell.
“Azerbaijan and then the season really kicks off with Miami then Monte Carlo.”
The 22-time grand slam winner can be seen expressing his shock at the statement, replying “They really don’t keep you on the continents?”
“No, no, no,” continued the British driver.
“There are a few conversations about this [the calendar], we’re left, right, and centre.”
This isn’t the first time Russell has expressed his displeasure though, also speaking about the crazy schedule during the race weekend in Melbourne.
“I think collectively, we have a really strong input,” said the driver in Australia.
“I think Stefano’s incredibly open to hearing our views and having conversations.
“There’s obviously been a lot of talk about how sustainable the calendar is, jumping from the Middle East to America and back to Europe. And I think in years to come that will be improved.
“Definitely I think Australia needs to be back-to-back with a Middle Eastern race, because I think almost all of us flew out here on a Saturday or Sunday last week. All of the mechanics, the engineers likewise so you’re already losing those additional three or four days. So it makes sense to be back-to-back with a Middle Eastern race.”
With the current layout, the sport is set to jet from Australia to Azerbaijan for the next race, some 8071 miles away.
Main Image Credit: Alamy