Russell was only ninth fastest in Q3, with team-mate Lewis Hamilton marginally better in seventh - albeit the latter was still 0.589 seconds slower than polesitter Max Verstappen.
An eventual 0.811s deficit for Russell was partly the result of a final-sector mistake. Otherwise, he reckoned he would have been 0.4s better off to potentially qualify inside the top five.
“We predicted before the session to be about 0.1s between ourselves, Ferrari, McLaren and Aston [Martin],” said Russell. “When it comes to that one lap in qualifying, if you nail it or you don't quite nail it, that can be the difference these days of six positions.
“I was on a really strong lap, 0.25s up by Turn 11 and expecting to maybe finish 0.4s ahead.
“Made one small mistake and lost all the time. That was a bit of a shame.”
The Mercedes camp has rued the inconsistent behaviour of its W15 challenger, with strong early practice running often giving way to lacklustre performances over a flying lap.
Source: Autosport