Russell "wanted a teammate like Kubica" to compete against

Williams rookie George Russell has expressed his excitement for battling against his new teammate Robert Kubica next season, as the Formula 2 champion wants to show what he's capable of against a Grand Prix winner.

Russell and Kubica are forming an all-new line-up for Williams in 2019, with Lance Stroll following his father to Force India and Sergey Sirotkin's financial backers having backed out of supporting the Russian's F1 adventure. 

Kubica, Williams' 2018 reserve driver, will be participating in an F1-season for the first time since 2010, while Russell will be driving for his first time in Formula 1 full stop. He was Mercedes' test driver in 2018 and even topped the grid for them in Hungary during the mid-season testing there, but he's never driven competitively.

With Kubica, though, Russell thinks he has an excellent teammate, as the 20-year-old explains why he thinks they'll make a good pair.

“I’m really excited to be teammates with Robert. I think obviously there is no doubt about his natural talent,” the Brit was quoted by Crash.net.

“He’s extremely motivated and has huge knowledge about the car on the technical side, and I think obviously it’s no secret of a tough year for Williams in 2018.

“I think with his experience and my knowledge of my experience at Mercedes, I think we have a huge amount to bring to the team.

“He’s a fantastic guy off the circuit. He’s extremely knowledgeable on the engineering side, and his speed and talent is unquestionable. I really wanted a teammate like Robert to go up against and show what I am capable of.”

The reigning F2 champion did add that the number one priority for him and Kubica will not be to beat each other, but rather to get Williams higher up the grid than in 2018 (which isn't very hard as they finished in last place).

“I think our targets next season are very clear, and that’s to get Williams back to fighting into the points and the top of the midfield.

“I think we want to be recognised, we want to be putting in good results.

“If I’m beating my teammate but it’s for last position, there’s no joy or glory for anybody. Myself and Robert will be working really hard together, firstly to get the team to where they deserve to be, and then we’ll see how the results are after that.”