George Russell claims that he shares a good relationship with Mercedes F1 teammate Lewis Hamilton. He also opened up on why he believes that the 38-year-old may not have shared the same kind of bond with some of his former teammates.
While F1 is a sport where there is always a rivalry between two teammates to showcase themselves as the lead driver of the side, the intensity of the rivalry between Hamilton and some of his other former teammates was higher than that among most teammates of the past.
After sharing an intense teammate rivalry with Fernando Alonso at McLaren in the 2007 and 2008 seasons, Hamilton’s fiercest rival may have come in the form of teammate Nico Rosberg during their time together at Mercedes from the 2013 to 2016 seasons.
Even though the Hamilton-Rosberg rivalry began with mutual respect and friendship, it quickly turned sour when the two had a car to battle for the Drivers’ Championship.
The two Mercedes F1 teammates not only collided with each other on track on several occasions but were also often seen avoiding each in post-race celebrations and other instances.
Now it will be interesting to see if Hamilton and Russell can maintain this level of a good relationship or if theirs too will turn sour.
George Russell opens up on his relationship with Lewis Hamilton
While speaking to Auto Motor und Sport, George Russell explained how the age difference between himself and Lewis Hamilton is likely to ensure that their relationship remains strong.
Russell believes that his partnership with Hamilton has worked as the duo is moving the side ‘forward together.’ He added that Hamilton may have had troubles with some of his past teammates as ‘there was a fight for supremacy’ in those teams, something which does not exist between them.
The 25-year-old then went on to explain how it will only hurt Mercedes F1 if there were to be a breakdown in his and Hamilton’s relationship.
‘Beating Hamilton not as important as first win’: Russell
In the same conversation with Auto Motor and Sport, George Russell also commented upon how his first race win in Brazil was far more important to him than beating Lewis Hamilton in the championship classification.
The 25-year-old said that no one will remember him beating Hamilton in the championship as he only finished fourth as compared to the 38-year-old’s sixth place.
Russell ended his remarks by stating that he feels ready to fight for the championship and now his hopes of doing so will depend upon how much Mercedes have improved compared to other teams.
After winning eight consecutive Constructors’ Championships, Mercedes finished only third last year. While the Silver Arrow’s fight with Ferrari was close, they were way behind Red Bull Racing.
Mercedes only scored 515 points as compared to the 759 points scored by the Milton Keynes outfit. With such a huge difference between the two sides, it will be interesting to see if Russell and co. can close this gap to Red Bull Racing or will the gap between the two teams only increase.
Also Read: How Much Does Lewis Hamilton Make?: 2023 Career Earnings of Mercedes Star
