Russell remains realistic after P3 in Baku: "We still have a lot of work to do"

Mercedes driver George Russell says there is "still a lot of work to do" despite claiming his second podium finish of the season at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

Russell started the race from second on the grid but was passed by Sergio Perez at the start. He then spent much of the race chasing down the Red Bull driver, but was unable to find a way past.

On lap 11, Russell pitted for hard tires, undercutting Perez and emerging ahead of the Mexican. However, Perez pitted for the same tires a lap later and emerged just behind Russell, who then found himself under pressure from the Red Bull driver.

On lap 28, Russell made a mistake at Turn 15 and ran wide, allowing Perez to pass him. Russell then pitted for soft tires on lap 34, but emerged behind Perez and teammate Lewis Hamilton, who had also pitted for soft tires.

Russell was unable to find a way past Hamilton, and finished the race in third place. Despite the podium finish, Russell says there is still a lot of work to do for Mercedes.

"We still have a lot of work to do"

"It was a tough race," said Russell. "We had a good start, but we lost out to Perez at the start. We then spent much of the race chasing him down, but we were unable to find a way past.

"We made a mistake at Turn 15, and that allowed Perez to pass us. We then pitted for soft tires, but we emerged behind Perez and Lewis. We were unable to find a way past Lewis, and finished the race in third place.

"It's good to be on the podium, but we still have a lot of work to do. We need to find more pace, and we need to be more consistent. We're not where we want to be yet, but we're making progress.

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff agreed with Russell's assessment, saying that the team still has a lot of work to do to compete with Red Bull and Ferrari.

"We're not where we want to be yet," said Wolff. "We need to find more pace, and we need to be more consistent. We're making progress, but we still have a lot of work to do."