Mercedes driver George Russell claimed he was inspired by Juan Pablo Montoya’s aggressive and fast style of driving.
At the age of 18, George Russell was making a name for himself in the F2 and F3 scenes. The Briton had just won the 2018 F2 championship and the 2017 GP3 Series championship in his rookie year.
Russell became only the 4th driver to win the two titles in consecutive seasons as a rookie. The others were Lewis Hamilton, Nico Hülkenberg and Charles Leclerc.
The Briton was signed up by the Mercedes Driver Academy in 2017 and would debut in F1 with Williams in the 2019 season. But he was already touted to be a future World Championship contender with immense potential.
He did not taste a lot of success at Williams. He was usually fighting in the midfield and amongst backmarkers for mere points. But he would constantly impress everyone with his pace during the Qualifying sessions, earning him the nickname of ‘Mr. Saturday.’
Russell’s pace and attack are heavily inspired by one of his favourite drivers who was known for his rapid speed. And it’s none other than, the Colombian 7 GP winner, Juan Pablo Montoya.
Montoya was known for his attacking, elbow’s out style of driving. He drove in F1 from 2001-06 and had his best years with Williams. He even held the record for the fastest lap-time record in F1.
And an 18-year-old George Russell wanted to race against him. He said, “If I could probably race against any driver, it would probably be Montoya.”
Russell adds, “When he was an F1 driver he was unbelievably aggressive. And some of his overtaking moves were incredible. He had a lot of battles against Schumacher and he would be the driver I want to go up against.”
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George Russell’s helmet was inspired by Juan Pablo Montoya
George Russell was a fan of Montoya for his style of driving. Montoya was fearless when he would battle with the likes of Michael Schumacher on track, something Russell adored.
Montoya was a CART champion and two-time Indy 500 winner before moving to F1. He drover with Williams from 2001-04 where he made a name for himself with his speed.
Russell used to watch Montoya back in his Karting and junior racing days. And when he got to drive for Williams which Montoya drove, he was overjoyed and revealed a special connection to the Colombian driver’s helmet design.
During the 1000th F1 race at the 2019 GP, drivers chose to have a special helmet lively. And Russell went back to his roots. He chose a half-and-half helmet that featured Montoya’s design and one used by his brother from their Karting days.
Russell said, “Back in 2006 when I first started karting I copied the helmet of my brother when he was karting. Only to find out it was inspired from the helmet of Montoya when he raced at Williams.”
He added, “So I decided it would be pretty cool. As Montoya’s a Williams legend – he’s also one of my favourite F1 drivers of all time. Just his character and the way he approached the racing, everything, he was a driver you would enjoy watching.”
Montoya himself loved the gesture by the Briton. He liked the design and said, “I only learned yesterday when I saw it on Twitter and I didn’t know George was a fan. But it was nice to see.”
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