SPIELBERG, Austria — Just when it seemed Mercedes’ Formula 1 pole position streak was surely at an end, George Russell had other ideas at the Austrian Grand Prix on Saturday. Russell came through the second-to-last corner seconds after Max Verstappen went spinning off the track toward the barrier, causing a yellow flag which means drivers must slow down.Russell was warned of the yellow flag ahead of time by Mercedes over the radio and argued he lifted off the accelerator earlier than usual for the corner and that the rest of his lap was still enough for first place.It was still “an amazing lap,” he said.The stewards agreed and deemed the incident needed “no further investigation”, keeping Russell on pole ahead of the Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton for Sunday’s “heat hazard” race. “I was glad common sense prevailed,” Russell said.With a margin of .236 of a second over Leclerc despite lifting off, Russell seemed to have plenty more pace available and will be a clear favorite to win for the first time since the season-opener in Australia, especially with standings leader Kimi Antonelli down in fourth.The key factor keeping Russell’s lap on the board was that it was a single, not double, yellow flag at the corner.A single yellow means drivers need to be able to show they slowed down noticeably. A double signifies more immediate danger, and in qualifying means drive …
