Russell reveals bizarre childhood dream ahead of 'best shot' at British GP win
Photo: Race Pictures
Updated: 19:34, 02 Jul
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Henry Eccles is a freelance Formula 1 journalist for GPblog, covering breaking news, live race blogs, and features across the F1 calendar. Since joining in 2026, he has produced high-volume reporting on the sport’s biggest stories, alongside feature pieces including analysis and historical content.
George Russell has revealed he thought winning the British GP was "so far-fetched" as a child that he never even dreamed of achieving it - instead, the Norfolk-born Mercedes driver had a very different dream growing up.
Russell enters his home Grand Prix weekend at Silverstone now just 40 points behind Mercedes teammate and championship leader Kimi Antonelli in the Drivers' standings after a commanding win at the Austrian GP last weekend.
Fending off late pressure from a resurgent Max Verstappen in the Styrian hills, momentum is beginning to shift back in the Briton's favour. The 28-year-old also secured P2 in Barcelona two weeks ago - taking advantage of Antonelli's DNF - after his own poor run of luck in previous rounds.
Speaking to GPblog, and others, during the British GP media day, Russell was asked whether he was a "dreamer" and if this weekend represents his best-ever chance at victory at Silverstone. The iconic circuit has not been kind to the home racer, with P5 in 2023 his best result to date.
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Russell said:"For sure it's my best shot, but it's not something I really think about because I just focus on my processes, focus on working hard with my team, because I know that's what translates into victories, not dreaming about it, you know, working towards it."
Russell: I used to dream about driving tractors
Photo: Race Pictures
Nonetheless, Russell was again quizzed whether he had dreamt of winning the British GP growing up, prompting a hilarious response from the Silver Arrows driver that revealed he instead dreamt of owning a Massey Ferguson tractor.
"Yeah. I've got to be honest, when I was a kid, I guess it was so far-fetched. I'm not even sure it was a dream because it was just not even possible to comprehend.
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"I remember dreaming of having a Massey Ferguson tractor when I was a kid. Because that was what was achievable if I succeeded, you know.
"So I will get a Massey Ferguson tractor one day, but it [winning Silverstone] was so far out of reach that it wasn't even possible to dream that could be a reality."
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