Russell on Hamilton rivalry: 'Team management not waiting for it'

George Russell can be admired in a Mercedes car from next season. The British driver succeeds Valtteri Bottas and gets Lewis Hamilton as his teammate, who is still his hero.

Russell is having an excellent year at Williams where he proved himself ready for a step up. It was, therefore, no surprise that Mercedes, in their search for a successor, found Russell. He is not under any illusions though, as he told the NOS.

"This will be the biggest challenge of my career", he points to Hamilton. "It's a privilege to have Lewis as a teammate. I consider him the very best: the greatest of all time. Seven world titles, that says it all. If I could choose my own teammate I would choose Lewis. I see the first season mainly as a learning year."

Nevertheless, Russell should try to make things as difficult as possible for Hamilton. The driver just doesn't know yet how he will do this. "I'm not thinking too far ahead and look at it from race to race. I realise that we have to work together and I'm looking forward to seeing what we can achieve. The team management is not waiting for a rivalry like the one between Lewis and Nico Rosberg. Neither do I. That seems logical to me."