Russell keen to see Verstappen at Mercedes: 'Every team wants the best driver'

Lewis Hamilton leaving for Ferrari was the most startling transfer to come out of Formula 1 in years. With the apparent internal struggles within Red Bull Racing, there is now speculation about a transfer that would be even more startling: Max Verstappen is, in fact, being linked to Mercedes.

At the German team, the Dutchman would be Hamilton's successor and become George Russell's teammate. The latter likes the idea of Verstappen coming to Mercedes: "I think any team wants to have the best driver lineup possible. And right now, Max is the best driver on the grid, so if any team had a chance to sign Max, they would 100% be taking it."

Russell continued: "So I think the question is more on the other side, his side, and Red Bull's side. Obviously, there is so much going on there. We don't know what truly is going on behind closed doors. And ultimately, it's none of our business right now," Russell said, going on to say, "Yes, I guess we'll be excited."

Russell thinks he can beat 

Verstappen is a more than tricky teammate to beat. Just ask the likes of Pierre Gasly and now Sergio Perez. However, Russell is confident he could keep up with Verstappen if they raced together for Mercedes. "As I said last week in Bahrain, this is my third season now alongside Lewis. He’s the greatest driver of all time, and I feel like I've done a pretty good job alongside him."

"So whoever was to line up alongside me next year or in the years to come, I welcome anybody, I welcome a challenge. You always want to go against the best. But, ultimately, for me, I just focus on myself. I believe in myself. I believe I can beat anybody on the grid. And you have just got to have that mentality. So, as I said, having Lewis as my benchmark for the last couple of years has been a pretty good benchmark for sure," the Briton concluded.