Russell: Bill still not settled with Albon after “driving like grandma” in F1 Monaco GP

George Russell may have selected the most expensive meal on the menu when taken to dinner in Monaco by Alex Albon - but the Mercedes driver insists it still does not make up for him driving like a “grandma” during the grand prix last weekend.

After an electrical issue in qualifying left him 14th on the grid, Russell already said that his weekend had “gone up in smoke” before the race and that proved to be the case as he and team-mate Andrea Kimi Antonelli were stuck behind the Williams duo of Albon and Carlos Sainz.

With the new Monaco mandatory two-stop regulation rolled out for the first time, Sainz and then Albon backed off significantly to allow one another to build up enough of a gap to pit and return to the track in front of Russell and Antonelli.

Russell grew so frustrated by the tactic that he purposefully went straight on at the Nouvelle Chicane to pass Albon, earning himself a drive-through penalty in the process.

The pair are friends away from the track and smoothed things over when Albon picked up the bill for dinner in Monaco that night, revealing Russell may have made the most of the offer.

Asked how dinner with Russell went, Albon replied: “Great. He ordered the most expensive thing on the menu. He did, actually. It was the lobster pasta. But he skipped on dessert, so it kind of equalled out. But it was good. It was good. It was a fun evening.

George Russell, Mercedes

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images via Getty Images

"I did pay, yeah. I was going to pay, I mean, I should pay. That was miserable, that race. Honestly, there's very little talk about racing.”

Russell, though, later joked Albon still had some of his debt left to pay for the Monaco shenanigans and explained the rationale behind taking the penalty by cutting the corner.

“Not expensive enough. So the bill is definitely not even just yet,” he replied when asked how expensive Sunday night’s dinner had been.

“I was just getting tired of staring at the back of the Williams rear wing for 50 laps, to be honest. It was a bit ironic because I finished higher up the order by doing that move than I would have done if I just stuck behind Alex. I pulled a whole pitstop in the space of three laps and then I was free to do my own race.

“But for us, the weekend was gone so early. We weren't fighting for anything. You get the same points for P11 as you do for P20. And as I said, I just wanted to enjoy Monaco. I didn't get the chance on Saturday.

“I at least enjoyed the last 25 laps of the race. So it's not part of the new George Russell being a rebel, cutting the track. I was just getting tired of seeing Alex driving like a grandma!”