Alex Albon Teases George Russell for Pitching Bag Deal Despite $15M Salary: “Not Like He’s Making Enough Money”

Alex Albon and George Russell have been sharing the grid since they were children competing in karts, dreaming of making it to F1 someday. Their relationship runs deep, and even though they race hard when pitted against each other on the track, moments of camaraderie play out often, too.

There’s also a lot of respect between the two. Russell even called Albon his “hero” in an interview last year. During their karting days, both he and Lando Norris were inspired by the Thai-British driver. “Lando and I looked up to Alex. Alex was our hero,” Russell had said.

However, that doesn’t stop the banter and the casual pulling of legs between the two. During the Japanese GP weekend this April, the British driver caught up with Albon at the hotel where they were staying. He noticed the Williams driver’s backpack and took a liking to it.

In a video posted by the Grove-based outfit on YouTube, Russell recalled proposing a deal to Albon: “He just got a new one, so I’m like, can I have the old one?”

Albon burst into laughter, thinking Russell was joking. But the 27-year-old really wasn’t.

The Mercedes star remained persistent and asked Albon, “Can I?” on two occasions. Albon then teased Russell by pointing out how he wanted the bag for free despite making more than enough money.

“He’s jealous of my bag,” Albon hilariously replied. “It’s not like he’s making enough money“.

Well, Albon isn’t wrong. Russell is making a lot of money — at least a lot more than Albon currently is. He earns $15 million a year at Mercedes, with rumors suggesting that the figure could be doubled before winter. Albon, meanwhile, makes $8 million — which, although not bad, isn’t near his friend’s salary.

Still, as far as the bag was concerned, Russell was having none of it. He continued pushing, only for Albon to keep shutting him down. When the 27-year-old realized he wasn’t going to succeed, he wished his counterpart a “good day,” and both went their separate ways.

But did Russell take revenge by showing Albon something he could never get? While they bumped into each other at their hotel in Suzuka accidentally, Russell and Albon also have planned meet-ups. The most recent one came in Monaco, where Russell showed Albon his Mercedes-AMG ONE.

Albon appeared amazed by it, and why wouldn’t he be? Costing $2.7 million, it’s an F1-inspired supercar of which only 275 models were produced. So even if Albon wanted one, he likely wouldn’t be able to get his hands on it.

A trade-off between the bag and the AMG-One on the cards? Well, that proposal would lead to another hilarious banter between Albon and Russell for sure.