Threatened by George Russell, Lewis Hamilton Is Reportedly ‘Pitting Mercedes Against’ His Teammate

Seven-time Drivers’ Champion Lewis Hamilton seems to be struggling more than ever recently with George Russell as his teammate, as he encountered his first winless campaign last year. And Hamilton did not suffer just that, as Russell also defeated him in the championship in his very first season with Mercedes.

And as Russell continues to pose more of a threat to Hamilton, former Red Bull driver David Coulthard has made some shocking claims. The 52-year-old believes that Hamilton is now attempting to pit Mercedes against Russell to get back to his very best.

✌🏾🇨🇦 pic.twitter.com/FziSLbQBcj

— Lewis Hamilton (@LewisHamilton) June 19, 2023

With Hamilton now having gone 31 races without a win for the first time in his F1 career, he is desperate to claim a victory before this season ends. And in order to achieve his goals, Coulthard believes that Hamilton is increasing his say in the team to suit his own needs.

David Coulthard warns George Russell of “formidable teammate” Lewis Hamilton

While recently speaking on the Formula For Success podcast, David Coulthard gave his thoughts on the current dynamics of the Mercedes team, and in the process also warned George Russell about Lewis Hamilton. “We gave warning of ‘be careful of getting ahead of yourself’ because Lewis, when he is on form, is a formidable teammate,” explained Coulthard (as quoted by racingnews365.com).

The former Red Bull driver then explained about how the “tide” has recently turned in recent races in favor of Hamilton. The 52-year-old believes that Hamilton is now looking “pretty sharp” and that there is a “spring in his voice” when he is speaking to his Mercedes team.

Encouraging progress and another podium scored. 👏

Talking through the major topics from Montréal with Mike in our #CanadianGP @akkodis_global Race Debrief.

— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) June 21, 2023

And the recent results seem to suggest the same. Hamilton has claimed three podiums this season, with two of them coming in his last two races.

And as the 38-year-old continues to achieve more positive results, he is also increasing his gap over Russell. As things stand, Hamilton is currently fourth in the championship with 102 points, and he is 37 points clear of teammate Russell.

Jordan believes Russell is a future world champion

While former F1 team owner Eddie Jordan was also concerned about George Russell when the Briton joined Mercedes, he believes that the 25-year-old has exceeded expectations. According to racingnews365.com, Jordan has been so thrilled to see the way Russell has been performing that he believes that the Mercedes driver is a future world champion.

We learn the most from our failures. Each one makes us stronger. 💪 Already looking forward and motivated for the next race. pic.twitter.com/1KYj1KqZLX

— George Russell (@GeorgeRussell63) June 20, 2023

Jordan has no doubt that Russell could achieve the same, provided he is in the right position and has the right car. When it comes to this season, Jordan believes that Mercedes are in a good position as Lewis Hamilton has also bounced back. However, the dominance of Red Bull and Max Verstappen has been such that Jordan does not see any chance of the Silver Arrows catching up to the Milton Keynes outfit.

As things stand in the Constructors’ Championship, Red Bull have scored 321 points and are currently a whopping 154 points clear of second-placed Mercedes. Considering how the season has panned out, it seems unlikely that anyone team will be able to catch up to Red Bull.