F1 analyst explains what really caused George Russell's Belgian Grand Prix crash

An F1 analyst has explained what potentially was the lead cause behind George Russell's race-ending crash at the Belgian Grand Prix.

The Mercedes driver saw his bid for the drivers' championship take another hit as he was forced to retire just seconds into the race following a collision with Lewis Hamilton.

Russell crashed out on the first lap after being clipped by the seven-time champion heading into Les Combes, and Hamilton was handed a five-second penalty as a result.

Although the Ferrari star was punished for causing the incident, Russell did not cast blame on his former Mercedes teammate, instead blasting the car's battery issue in an X-rated radio message.

"I’m out [of the race]”, Russell fumed: “What the f**k happened with the SOC (State of Charge) down the straight?”

“I had no f**king battery down the straight.

“Guys unacceptable, un-f**king-acceptable this whole weekend.”

The 28-year-old suffered a double blow at the Belgian Grand Prix, as he lost further ground on teammate Kimi Antonelli in the race for the world championship, with the 19-year-old securing his sixth victory of the campaign.

Russell continued to display anger towards the problems he's faced, accepting he's "numb to the disappointment" after falling 60 points behind Antonelli, and further analysis has been done in the build-up to his crash.

According to Formula Data Analysis on X, the Briton's car had a deployment issue, and his speed got stuck at 308 km/h, meaning his car couldn't accelerate and only started accelerating again at the end of the straight.

The account dissected the problems even further, stating that Russell tackled Eau Rouge/Raidillon in eighth gear, while McLaren used 7th despite having the shortest gear ratios on the grid.

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"Could the deployment software have been fooled by taking these corners in the highest gear?" they wrote. "His rpm dropped to 10,176, below the 10,500 rpm threshold required to unlock full fuel flow → the ICE wasn't even running at full power!"

Toto Wolff shares insight into George Russell's mindset

Russell cut a dejected figure after being forced to retire from another race, but Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has ensured that the team are fully behind him during a difficult period.

"I think all drivers when – at least the ones that I have worked with – when they have difficult spells, and it happens to any sports person, you need to find a way of motivating or building up," Wolff admitted.

“George has his way, and I’m definitely trying to do that. And I’ve known him for such a long time. I understand the frustrations, and the team is 100 per cent behind him.”

Wolff also revealed that Mercedes’ priority is to score maximum points, and it doesn't matter who is ahead, as they remain odds-on to win the constructors' championship ahead of Ferrari and Red Bull.

"We don’t want any yo-yoing, and then have a Ferrari or a Red Bull breathing down our neck and losing a victory, as happened in Barcelona – without the DNF Kimi would have won the race," he continued.

“So, since Barcelona, we would in any case always give preference to the race victory.

“And if it meant that Kimi or George were ahead, this is what we would do. This is a constructors’ championship as much as a drivers’ championship."

Russell will hope for improved fortunes when he returns for the Hungarian Grand Prix this weekend in the final race before the summer break.