Russell sees bad luck for Verstappen: "Max could have won all races"

"No," Russell is adamant to the NOS. "Lewis is a great guy and is one of the cleanest racers in our sport. He deserves all the respect and credit, but I also wish Verstappen the title. His first half of the season is convincing. Max could have won all the races if things had gone slightly differently. He deserves this success."

Russell also sees that his generation-mate has, in fact, been performing particularly well for quite some time. "Max has been performing at an ultra-high level for so long and always had a car that was just not good enough. That's the annoying thing about today's Formula 1. You saw it last season: in a Mercedes, I drive at the front and a week later I am in the rear with Williams. And that's not because I've suddenly lost the ability to race."

At the Sakhir Grand Prix, Russell replaced the ailing Hamilton at Mercedes. He immediately made a smashing impression, although it did not earn him a podium. Due to a mistake during the pit stop, the 23-year-old driver had to settle for ninth place. At Williams, he scored his first points for Williams last weekend in Hungary by finishing ninth. Possibly that will become a P8 if Sebastian Vettel remains disqualified.