George Russell on Mercedes F1 teammate Lewis Hamilton:“If the good relationship with Lewis were to break down…”
The dynamic between the Mercedes teammates will be a fascinating talking point as the F1 2023 season gets set to begin.
Hamilton is coming off the back of his worst-ever season, 💮but Russell claimed his first F1 grand prix victory which was also Mercedes’ sole win of 2022.
"Lewis and I, it worked because we know we're moving the team forward together ♏rath🧜er than against each other,” Russell told .
“If there were problems with driver pairings in the past, it was perhaps also because the age difference was smaller, aꦜnd there was a fight for supremacy in t✅he team. We don't have that.
"If the good relat🐓ionship with Lewis were to break down, it wouldn't do the team any good and hurt ourselves over time."
The early part of Mercedes’ 2022 was blighted by ღporpoising issues, and Hamilton took the bulk of responsibility for testing solutions to that. He was left nursing a back injury 🥂in Baku.
Russell eventually finished ahead of him in the168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史: F1 standings after glory at the F1 Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
"For me, this victory in Brazil was more🍸 important than the points classification,” he said.
“At the end of the day, nobody remembers🧸💯 that I beat Lewis on points. I only finished fourth, so no man's land.
"If someone had offered me a win, a pole position and eight podiums a year ago, I would have said: No, thank you. My aspirations and those of the team are much higher than what we🤪 have achieved."
Hamilton is vying for an all-time record eighth F1 championship this year, and hoping to end the domination of his rival 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Max Verstappen.
Russell, however, could emerge as a credible threat to the꧑ title too.
"We know we're building a car that will be faster than last year's 𓄧car,” Russell said.
“I am also sure that we will improve compared to last year. But 🌄we don't know what♎ everyone else has done. And that's the problem. It's a relative game.
"I feel ready to f🐻igh🍷t for the championship."
Mercedes are set to unve🥃il their W14 challenger on Wednesday February 15.
They have als⭕o recruited Mick Schumacher as their third driver.
Russell said: "If I were in Mick's shoes, I would work super hard in the sim♎ulator here in Brackley and try everything to integrate well into the team."
James was a🍬 sports journalist at Sky Sports for a decade covering everything from American sꦜports, to football, to F1.
