George Russell reveals how Lewis Hamiton ‘saved’ his Mercedes career

George Russell insists he would've been blamed for Mercedes' struggles if Lewis Hamilton had retired.

George Russell reveals how Lewis Hamiton ‘saved’ his Mercedes career

George Russell and Lewis Hamilton

George Russell joined Mercedes in 2022. Since then, the 25-year-old has managed to defy expectations. As Russell has consistently outperformed Lewis Hamilton as a teammate at the Silver Arrows. The British driver has also bagged the team’s only win since his addition to the Brackley squad. Subsequently, George is adamant that having Hamilton as his teammate made his life easier during the Mercedes woes.

The 25-year-old was grateful to share the car with Lewis Hamilton at the Silver Arrows, especially at a time when Mercedes had fallen back in the pecking order and lost its championship-winning streak. George Russell said, “For me, being teammates with Lewis is such a golden opportunity. Especially now that the car isn’t performing as we want. Having him as my teammate has saved me in some regard.”

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George Russell believed that if Hamilton had left the team before 2022, the 25-year-old would have been held responsible for the drop in Mercedes’s pace. He explained, “because if he had retired or left the sport when I joined the team. And we took this step backwards. People would be pointing the blame towards me!”

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However, the 25-year-old was confident about showing his talent on track as he raced alongside Lewis in the equal F1 machinery. This has helped to eliminate the pressure from George Russell’s shoulders. The Briton continued, “But I feel like now I’ve proven my worth. And I’ve proven what I’m capable of, so there’s no pressure in that regard.”

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George Russell “not worried about statistics” against Lewis Hamilton

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Hamilton has not been able to overshadow Russell during the pair’s time as teammates

Russell was glad to be in a comfortable position at the Silver Arrows that allowed him to extract the most performance. He said, “I’m out there to do the best job possible. And I think that is a very fortunate position to be in.” Moreover, George Russell did not care about the figures or even matching the pace of his teammate. He stated, “I’m not worried about any statistics or making sure that I’m on Lewis’s pace or whatever.”

The 25-year-old explained this is a result of his consistent performance since 2022 as George Russell continues to match the 7-time world champion at Toto Wolff‘s Mercedes this season as well. He concluded, “Because I feel like I showed that last year. there’s already been two races this year and I qualified ahead both times, and the pace was very close between the two of us in the race. What a position to be in to go up against the greatest ever.”

Thus, George Russell believes the 25-year-old would have been blamed for Mercedes’ struggles if Lewis Hamilton had left the team. The British driver managed to outscore Hamilton over the course of 2022. Subsequently, Russell is in a comfortable place in his career. The Mercedes driver was also not worried about his future teammate once the 7-time world champion quits.

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