What does George Russell bring to Mercedes?

08-09-2021 18:04
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Cameron Smith

It’s finally happened. The worst-kept secret in Formula One has been announced - George Russell will be driving for Mercedes in 2022.

It comes after months of speculation, but the driver currently excelling for Williams will be partnering his fellow countryman Lewis Hamilton next season.

With Valtteri Bottas’ move to Alfa Romeo confirmed, it paved the way for Mercedes to announce Russell as their second driver for the 2022 campaign. Of course, the news isn’t exactly new - given the fact everyone in the paddock, plus the fans, all saw this coming a mile off - but it’s refreshing to finally see confirmation.

It’s a move almost every F1 fan wanted to see, and Russell will now be able to display his skills much further up the grid. He may well even compete for the Drivers’ Championship next year, and his relationship with Hamilton will be one to keep an eye on if tensions boil over.

Hamilton, of course, had an excellent relationship with Bottas, but unlike Nico Rosberg, his other teammate at Mercedes, the Finn never pushed for the title, so it will be interesting how the seven-time world champion fares with Russell alongside him.

With the hype around Russell so strong, what is it about him that makes him such a good driver, and what will he bring to Mercedes?

Consistent, Genuine Speed

Russell is simply rapid; there’s absolutely no doubt about that. He’s outperformed the Williams in the past two years in particular, and even as a rookie, he was far better than the experienced Robert Kubica, despite not scoring a point in 2019. He fought off competition from Alex Albon and more prevalently Lando Norris to win the Formula 2 title in 2018 when in equal machinery, and look at where Norris is now; he’s constantly fighting near the front in the third or fourth best car on the grid. Think about what Russell will do in the best car on the grid. 

Furthermore, when he filled in for Hamilton at the Sakhir Grand Prix last year, he would’ve won the race if it weren’t for Mercedes’ pit-stop nightmare and that late puncture. During that race, Russell had to ask Hamilton’s engineer Peter Bonnington what buttons to press on the dash, yet he still was quicker than Bottas. It was damning on the Finn, but proved Russell was ready to step up, and that was before his immense 2021.

Excellence in Qualifying

On the ‘Beyond The Grid’ podcast, Russell’s current teammate Nicholas Latifi revealed it was the Brit’s qualifying pace that is his best asset. The Canadian driver said: “I think one of the things George is really good at in qualifying specifically is building up the pace lap by lap, finding the time without over-pushing. It’s very easy to over-push but sometimes pushing harder isn’t necessarily the way to find the lap time, and George seems to be very good at finding that right balance of consistently improving lap by lap. I think it’s just the consistency of how he builds each lap whereas sometimes I can do a great first lap and be very close or sometimes faster on a first lap but then I don’t improve as much as I need to on the next lap.”

Russell has reached Q3 on three occasions this year, including a P2 finish in Belgium, and has only exited Q1 once, despite driving the second or third slowest car on the entire grid. It should be a close fight to reach Q2 every race, but Russell has made it look easy to extract the maximum out of Williams over one lap. He has also, of course, never been beaten in qualifying in two-and-a-half years as a Williams driver.

Now, arguably Bottas’ greatest strength is also his qualifying; over the past two seasons, Mercedes have been able to take the fight to Red Bull by having two cars near the front, to the one of Christian Horner’s team. Sergio Perez has shown his race pace this season, but he hasn’t delivered enough on Saturdays, and Russell has proven he is so good over one lap that Mercedes will keep the advantage they currently hold over Red Bull, and likely even improve it.

Youth

Bottas is 32, Russell is 23. That speaks for itself. Mercedes have consolidated their future by bringing in Russell, and he also brings the talent needed to compete with Max Verstappen for years once Hamilton eventually retires from the sport.

With talented drivers coming through the feeder series, think Oscar Piastri, Theo Pourchaire and Dennis Hauger, Mercedes have a driver capable of competing against these new talents, as well as competing right now; Russell is the perfect solution.

The Best Driver Line-Up

Russell’s arrival brings Mercedes the best line-up on the grid in my opinion. Hamilton is, of course, one of the top two drivers, but with Bottas, it could be argued that Mercedes didn’t have the best pairing; Red Bull, Ferrari and McLaren certainly run them close this year. However, with Russell and Hamilton, the Silver Arrows will have the best pairing on the grid, and if they can navigate the new regulations successfully, then they’ll probably have the best car as well, given Red Bull’s focus on this year. 

That’s a recipe for success, and Mercedes’ dominance could well continue for many years to come.

A Problem for Hamilton

While Bottas has had rare moments of brilliance at Mercedes - think of his wins at Sochi in 2017 and 2020, both of which came from a P3 starting spot, or his four wins in 2019 - he simply hasn’t been on par with Hamilton consistently.

Now, that is potentially the hardest thing to achieve as an F1 driver, but Russell might be able to do it. Of course, that’s just a prediction, but I think Russell will be able to challenge Hamilton at Mercedes. While the veteran will still be the number one driver, Russell will push him hard, and it will require a switch of mindset for Hamilton, who hasn’t faced an inter-team battle since Rosberg won the 2016 title, and subsequently retired from the sport.

Russell joining the team will certainly provide Hamilton a problem in regards to the Drivers’ Championship. It could be a problem that fuels him to reach even greater heights, but it could turn sour. However, with Russell’s personality and respect for Hamilton, that does seem unlikely; although crazier things have happened in Formula One.