There wouldn’t be better teammates than Lewis Hamilton, a seven-time world champion, from whom a young driver can learn the craft. During their time together as Mercedes teammates, George Russell also took notes and learned as much as he could from F1’s statistically most successful driver.
Of course, there haven’t been many better than Hamilton when it comes to on-track craft but perhaps no one has used F1 as a platform to share their voice like he has. Hamilton never turned a blind eye to issues such as discrimination or climate change. He has always sought to become a role model to the millions watching from home, and Russell quickly understood that.
“I learned from Lewis that we all have this platform and that we have to use it properly,” he said to Motorsport-Total.
Thank you, Lewis. It’s been special. pic.twitter.com/OcxXqgJQze
— George Russell (@GeorgeRussell63) December 8, 2024
Russell noted how youngsters — even his nieces and nephews — would follow their every move on platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and Netflix. Even his boss Toto Wolff’s son Jack would publicly show how much he admired the F1 drivers. “The young children are inspired,” Russell added.
Between 2022 and 2024, Russell developed a competitive, but healthy relationship with one of the greatest F1 drivers his country has ever produced. But that came to an end earlier this month in Abu Dhabi, and now it is up to Russell to carry the best version of himself with Hamilton at Ferrari from 2025 onwards.
A new challenge for Russell
Russell won’t just have to fill in the ‘F1-related’ void left behind by Hamilton, but also his massive presence in the garage and team HQ. He has talent and also commercial appeal — something Mercedes would need — but it doesn’t come close to what Hamilton had.
Russell is sponsored by brands that are already partnered with Mercedes, and also the German brand’s road-cars division, BRDC, Bell Helmets, and Alpinestars. But the 26-year-old will have to start racking up wins and championships like Hamilton, if he ever wants to match the seven-time world champion’s marketability.
From a sporting perspective, Russell will most certainly be the main man at the Silver Arrows next year, with his new teammate being 18-year-old rookie Kimi Antonelli, who will surely need time before getting up to speed with F1 cars.
