“That’s not what I want my career to be remembered by”– George Russell reveals what Sakhir GP 2020 made him learn in life

Tanish Chachra | 22/01/2022
"That’s not what I want my career to be remembered by"– George Russell reveals what Sakhir GP 2020 made him learn in life

George Russell after a long service to Williams is finally getting a chance in Mercedes, but the last time he competed for them, it disappointed him.

George Russell came in to serve Mercedes in 2020 when Lewis Hamilton was diagnosed with COVID-19. Then Williams driver was set to drive W11 in the Sakhir GP.

After spending two years without gaining any point in F1, Russell had the direct shot at a win or a podium at least. However, some series of unfortunate mistakes by his team made him lose the prospect of celebrating on the grandstand.

Now, around more than a year of that incident, Russell has progressed massively. He will no longer drive as a substitute for Mercedes, but as a regular driver. Talking about it Russell reveals that from that race, he learnt some harsh truths.

“I think people who have it easy throughout their career, throughout their life, when they do face these disappointments, they struggle to deal with it, and probably aren’t able to bounce back as quickly.

“And that’s why I’m grateful that I’ve been in this position on a number of occasions, to make me more resilient. I would have loved to have won that race [Sakhir 2020], but that’s not what I want my career to be remembered by.”

Also read: F1 expert thinks George Russell’s arrival could pose a problem for Lewis Hamilton

George Russell aims for a strong to career

Going into the fourth season of his F1 career, Russell seems to have a guaranteed long future in the sport. Though, he needs to deliver consistently at this stage of his career. Seeing this, the Briton expects a strong career ahead.

“I want to be the most complete driver possible and I want to look back in 20 years time and say ‘that was an incredibly strong career, every single outcome had a reason behind it and that made me a stronger driver’.”

“I believe that race in Bahrain, losing that victory, will make me a stronger driver. In a way, it would have been too much of a fairytale to have won and I probably wouldn’t have appreciated the achievement if that had happened.”

Also read: George Russell clarifies he will not be studying Lewis Hamilton ahead of his Mercedes debut

Post Edited By: Tanish Chachra
George Russell Mercedes

About the author

Tanish Chachra

Tanish Chachra is the Motorsport editor at The SportsRush. He saw his first race when F1 visited India in 2011, and since then, his romance with the sport has been seasonal until he took up this role in 2020. Reigniting F1's coverage on this site, Tanish has fallen in love with the sport all over again. He loves Kimi Raikkonen and sees a future world champion in Oscar Piastri. Away from us, he loves to snuggle inside his books.

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