Lewis Hamilton missed a Grand Prix due to Covid, but the Briton didn’t get to experience the team’s dominant era. On that occasion, he was unlucky, suffering a puncture that denied him what would have been a deserved win.
Given the level of performance he has shown over the past three years alongside the seven-time world champion, now at Ferrari, he believes things could have turned out differently.
“Being teammates with a seven-time world champion for three years is not easy,” he told The Athletic. “There was a time when, if you finished ahead of Lewis Hamilton in a race or in the championship, you had won. If I had arrived five years earlier, I might have had two titles under my belt.”
George Russell, however, has no regrets. He looks to the future and has taken on a natural leadership role at Mercedes alongside rookie Kimi Antonelli, and his extremely solid start to the season proves it: with three podiums in five Grands Prix, he has shown he’s ready for this new role.
“I’m just continuing to do my job, as I’ve done in recent years,” he said. “I work with the same group of engineers and the same mechanics. Of course, Lewis had such an aura that his absence is felt. But in the day-to-day operations, nothing changes.”
“Honestly, I feel absolutely ready. Every time we’ve had even half a chance at a pole position or a win, we’ve taken it. I feel like I’m progressing season by season. I feel ready, confident, and I believe in myself. And I think I’m driving as well as anyone else on the grid.”
“I would never say I’m the best. Even if I thought it, I refuse to have that kind of mindset. Because for me, believing you’re on top is the beginning of the downfall. You must always believe you can do better.”
His contract with the Brackley-based team expires at the end of the year, and an extension is the most likely outcome. As Motorsport.com reported in mid-April, discussions have recently progressed, but according to George Russell, the absence of an agreement at this stage of the year is not a concern.
“When Lewis was here, contract discussions never started before June or July,” Russell recalls ahead of the Miami Grand Prix weekend. “It was always during the summer. What’s unusual today is the number of drivers signing so early and for such long terms.”
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