Russell stood in for Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes for the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix, following a positive coronavirus test result for Hamilton. Russell stated in the pre-event press conference he felt "no pressure", following Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff's expectation that the car would finish in the top five. Russell qualified for second position on the front row for the race start, narrowly missing out on pole to teammate Valtteri Bottas by 26 milliseconds. Russell took early control from the race start and led most of the race, but with 20 laps remaining, Mercedes team mechanics fitted Bottas' front tyres on Russell's car, causing him to have to re-pit on the next lap to correct the error. He then suffered a slow puncture ten laps before the finish and was forced to pit again. Russell finished in ninth place and earned his first three World Championship points, two points for ninth and one for the fastest lap. Russell was praised by the media and the Mercedes team for his Sakhir performance.