One of the most ambitious goals for drivers is to gain entry into a highly exclusive and longstanding club. This is the club of the so-called ‘top drivers,’ a circle that does not require membership cards or official appointments; entry is granted by acclamation from industry insiders, media, and fellow drivers. The status is determined by a mix of results, salary, and standing within the team, something that cannot be calculated with a mathematical formula but is felt in the paddock atmosphere.
Who are the active members of this club today? Let’s start with the certainties: Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen, names on which no one can have any doubt. Next are Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc, although they are still empty in the ‘world titles’ column, they have long been the reference points for their respective teams. Opinions on Alonso are still leaning towards ‘yes,’ but with an asterisk, since Fernando has not won a Grand Prix in almost twelve years. In recent years, Carlos Sainz has also moved closer to entering the club, but it is unlikely he will maintain his position in 2025, barring any miracles from Williams.
Finally, there is a driver who has everything to be considered a full member of the top-driver club, but this status is not always granted to him. George Russell is about to begin his seventh season in Formula 1, his fourth with Mercedes. His numbers place him in perfect alignment with top drivers since he started his career in single-seaters, starting with titles won as a rookie in GP3 and F.2.
Statistics also say that a driver destined for the top always manages to make it to the podium in the first two seasons, an achievement impossible for George due to the lack of competitiveness of the Williams with which he debuted, the worst car (the FW42 of 2019) ever built by the team.
But few remember that in his second season in Formula 1, George was robbed of a win due to circumstances beyond his control. It was the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix, where Lewis Hamilton‘s positive Covid test forced Mercedes to call Russell at the last minute, and George responded immediately with second place in qualifying, just 26 thousandths behind poleman Valtteri Bottas, driving a car he had never driven before. No problem, at the start Russell took the lead and held it authoritatively until the second pit stop, when the team mounted Valtteri Bottas‘ tires on George’s car, forcing him to stop again, dropping him to ninth.
That evening, Russell, inconsolable, shed a few tears sitting on a flowerbed in the Sakhir paddock. A win in his ‘debut’ with Mercedes would have been a massive boost for his career. “Don’t worry, George, your time will come soon,” Toto Wolff said, but in reality, his arrival in Mercedes was delayed by another twelve months due to a clause in the contract exercised by then team principal and shareholder Claire Williams when she sold the team to the Dorilton fund. With Russell on board, the team package had greater value.
What prevented the Englishman from being immediately under the spotlight, as his talent deserved, was the coincidence of his transition to the lead role at Mercedes with the beginning of the team’s dark period.
George found himself driving for the team he had long dreamed of precisely when the technical department struggled to interpret the return of ground effect aerodynamics. Despite the challenges, Russell still managed to claim his first Formula 1 victory at the Brazilian Grand Prix, confirming his skills over three seasons of direct comparison with Hamilton.
Russell’s entry into the top-driver club has been confirmed by his team’s decisions. Behind Toto Wolff’s choice to give rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli his debut with Mercedes is the awareness of having a driver of great value within the team.
Giving the car to a rookie means accepting a natural adaptation period, a few mistakes that are part of the learning process, and a performance that will gradually improve throughout the season. Wolff’s decision indirectly confirms the status Russell enjoys within the team today, a position George earned over three years working alongside Hamilton.
No one knows better than the engineers who have worked with Russell over the past three seasons the value of the driver and the depth of his professionalism. It was from them that the most important endorsement came, confirming that George represents the continuity between Hamilton’s departure and Antonelli’s arrival, and the $18 million per season contract also testifies to the value of the 27-year-old Brit.
At Brackley, they are convinced that it is only a matter of time, the time necessary to return with a car capable of competing for the top positions. The driver to bring them back to the front, they are sure, is already in-house.
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