Mercedes have confirmed George Russell is to join the team and partner world champion Lewis Hamilton next season. The announcement has been expected for some time and represents an enormous opportunity for the 23-year-old British driver from King’s Lynn.
Mercedes have dominated Formula One for the past seven years and Russell now has a chance to compete in what will doubtless be one of the best cars on the grid in 2022. Hamilton last drove in an all-British pairing with Jenson Button at McLaren between 2010 and 2012.
Russell is currently in his third season in F1 driving for Williams, where he has outperformed one of the slowest cars in the field, putting in a series of impressive drives that have repeatedly caught the eye. He has been part of the Mercedes young driver programme since 2017 and his time at Williams was seen as a period of gaining experience with a view to him stepping up to Mercedes at some point. The length of the contract has not been revealed.
“It’s a special day for me personally and professionally. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t absolutely buzzing. It’s a huge opportunity,” he said. “I’m under no illusions as to the scale of the challenge – it’s going to be a steep learning curve. I want to do my new teammates proud. Of course, one of those new teammates is in my opinion the greatest driver of all time.
“I’ve looked up to Lewis since I was in go-karts and the opportunity to learn from someone who has become a role model both on and off track can only benefit me as a driver, a professional, and a human being.”
Russell has made his mark with such authority that the promotion has come sooner than was perhaps expected after some below-par performances from Hamilton’s current teammate, Valtteri Bottas, this season.
The Mercedes team principal, Toto Wolff, admitted the decision to drop Bottas for Russell had not been easy but was optimistic the new line-up would prove formidable.
“It is our challenge together to help George continue learning within our environment and alongside Lewis, the greatest F1 driver of all time,” he said. “I am confident that, as their relationship grows, they will form a strong team and deliver for Mercedes on and off the track in the years ahead.”
Hamilton was understood to favour retaining Bottas with whom he has developed a friendly and positive working relationship since the Finn joined Mercedes in 2017. However Bottas has rarely threatened the world champion on track and not put him under any real pressure for the title in the way he was challenged by former teammate Nico Rosberg. Hamilton can expect a much sterner test from Russell.
Russell has repeatedly proved his credentials as a top-class driver in the past three seasons. When given the chance to drive the Mercedes, standing in for a Covid-stricken Hamilton at last year’s Sakhir GP, he delivered a masterful performance. On for a win he was denied only by a puncture and a rare Mercedes pit error. At the Belgian GP this year he put in a remarkable run in qualifying in the wet to put his Williams into second place on the grid.
He has shown great prowess in qualifying but also has a fearlessness and touch in racing that Hamilton would recognise. At the French GP in 2019 Russell went round the outside of teammate Robert Kubica at just under 200mph through the fearsome Signes corner, a moment of breathtaking skill and courage.
At last weekend’s Dutch GP Hamilton’s title rival, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen who leads the championship by three points, warned that Russell would “make it very difficult for Lewis”.
How Hamilton adapts to a new teammate and one who is likely to threaten him more than Bottas will be fascinating, especially with Mercedes’ policy being to allow their drivers to race one another without priority or orders. Hamilton, who is now in his 15th season in F1, is 36 years old and has signed to race on with Mercedes for another two years. He has insisted he would welcome the new challenge from one of F1’s next generation.
Russell has, however, shown moments of weakness that Mercedes will be hoping he can eliminate. Notably a crash behind the safety car in 2020 at Imola during the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix and similarly at the same race this year when he crashed with Bottas while attempting an overtake on a wet track.
