Webber curious how Russell copes with higher expectations

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19:01, 28 Jan 2022

George Russell can show in 2022 how good he really is. He will have to compete with Lewis Hamilton, but according to Mark Webber, first and foremost it will be interesting to see how the replacement for Valtteri Bottas will cope with the higher expectations.

Webber believes that it will be a great challenge for Russell to take on Hamilton. However, the former Formula 1 driver thinks that the young Brit is ready for it, after all he already has almost 50 Grands Prix behind his name. Whether Russell will be able to make everything work immediately at Mercedes remains to be seen.

More pressure

"It's different to qualify well in a below average car and do well when you have little pressure. George will know that there will be a huge shift in intensity that comes with the expectation that he qualifies on the front row every week and finishes in first place every race," Webber said in an interview with Formelaustria.at.

In the past three years, Russell has only been on the podium once with his old employer Williams. In last year's rained-out Belgian Grand Prix, he finished second. It seems very likely that the number of podium finishes will increase next season.

Pos.	Driver	Team	Points
1	Kimi Antonelli Kimi Antonelli	MercedesMER	156
2	Lewis Hamilton Lewis Hamilton	FerrariFER	115
3	George Russell George Russell	MercedesMER	106
4	Charles Leclerc Charles Leclerc	FerrariFER	75
5	Lando Norris Lando Norris	McLarenMCL	73
6	Oscar Piastri Oscar Piastri	McLarenMCL	70
7	Max Verstappen Max Verstappen	Red Bull RacingRBR	55
8	Isack Hadjar Isack Hadjar	Red Bull RacingRBR	37
9	Pierre Gasly Pierre Gasly	AlpineALP	32
10	Liam Lawson Liam Lawson	Racing BullsRCB	28
11	Franco Colapinto Franco Colapinto	AlpineALP	19
12	Oliver Bearman Oliver Bearman	HaasHAA	18
13	Arvid Lindblad Arvid Lindblad	Racing BullsRCB	14
14	Carlos Sainz Carlos Sainz	WilliamsWIL	6
15	Alexander Albon Alexander Albon	WilliamsWIL	5
16	Esteban Ocon Esteban Ocon	HaasHAA	3
17	Gabriel Bortoleto Gabriel Bortoleto	AudiAUD	2
18	Fernando Alonso Fernando Alonso	Aston MartinAST	1
19	Nico Hulkenberg Nico Hulkenberg	AudiAUD	0
20	Valtteri Bottas Valtteri Bottas	CadillacCAD	0
21	Sergio Perez Sergio Perez	CadillacCAD	0
22	Lance Stroll Lance Stroll	Aston MartinAST	0

Webber curious how Russell copes with higher expectations

More pressure

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