George Russell admitted he nearly did not compete at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix after overcoming illness to finish an impressive second .

The Mercedes driver missed Thursday’s F1 media day and was battling an infection throughout the weekend.

Russell qualified fifth on Saturday and delivered another superb display in the race, with a solid long first stint allowing him to leapfrog Williams’ Carlos Sainz and finish behind race winner Max Verstappen .

“I was pretty glad when I saw the chequered flag, to be honest. I was fortunate — I felt much better today than I felt on Friday and Saturday,” Russell said.

“Fortunately, it was Baku . Even though it’s one of the toughest circuits, mentally and physically it’s maybe one of the easiest.

“Had it been Singapore, as an example, I th

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