Wolff affirms George Russell's deserved contract extension is on its way

17:09, 19 Jun

Updated: 18:57, 19 Jun

bySavannah Lenz

George Russell and Mercedes have not yet signed a contract renewal. The Briton’s contract only lasts until the end of the year. However, Toto Wolff has admitted that the contract is in the works.

After starting in pole position, Russell went on to win the Canadian Grand Prix. After that, Mercedes team principal and CEO Wolff was asked about the ongoing contract negotiations.

Russell himself has been very vocal about not yet having a contract with Mercedes, but when speaking to GPBlog and others, Wolff put the rumours to rest.

Wolff is adamant: We are getting there

He said, “It's been so long with us and he's growing. The steps he's made from the young driver in Williams, then coming to Mercedes at a difficult time, being on par with Lewis. And then, since Lewis left, being clearly a senior driver in the team, and it comes naturally.”

“It's not like there's some politics. He's just taken the place that he merits and deserves. The ambience in the team is great. And we've agreed on some kind of timeline when we want to settle these things.”

Wolff then admits that the timing just hasn’t been great. "The triple-header, us getting out of the way in one race after the other now in June and July, but we're gonna get there.” After being prompted by the media, he reiterated, “We're gonna get there.”

“He's been a Mercedes junior in the same way that Kimi was since he was 16 so it isn't dependent whether he wins a race, whether he performs because we know he can.”