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George Russell believes Mercedes are getting closer and closer to their first win of the season after claiming second place at the 2022 F1 Dutch GP.
The Briton started the race in P6 on medium tires like his teammate Lewis Hamilton in P4 and did well to keep up with the seven-time world champion for the majority of the race.
Towards the end of the race, a stationary Valtteri Bottas on the start-finish straight forced the Safety Car to come out. George Russell made the executive decision to ask Mercedes to fit soft tires onto his car and this paid off at the restart.
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The 24-year-old was able to catch and pass Lewis Hamilton, who was leading at the Safety Car restart after pole-sitter Max Verstappen retook the lead in the race.
In his post-race interview with David Coulthard for Sky Sports, George Russell was ecstatic with the result and the maximum capacity crowd at the venue. He said:
“Firstly, a huge thank you to all of the crowd here. It’s been an incredible reception, It’s a really special feeling for all of us drivers to come race in Zandvoort and Holland. So, thank you very much.”
The Briton was then asked about the close shave he had with Lewis Hamilton in the lead up to his overtake on his teammate. George Russell added:
“We like to keep it close, you know, always. I think as a team today, we showed incredible pace, I know the team result wasn’t quite what we hoped for but this gives us a lot of confidence and a lot of faith moving forward.”
The former Williams driver was buoyed after securing his best finish for Mercedes yet, matching the P2 he claimed at Spa-Francorchamps last year. Russell then expressed hope of contesting for wins in the races to come, saying:
“I think it’s incredible to see three different teams on the podium and we, Mercedes are slowly getting closer to that top step. So, let’s keep on pushing.”
While Russell was pleased with his result, the same cannot be said for Lewis Hamilton, who felt like he was stiffed by Mercedes' strategy late on despite holding the lead in the race.
George Russell is a world champion in the making, according to Mercedes boss Toto Wolff
George Russell is 'a future world champion' in the eyes of Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff.
Wolff has backed his young driver and claimed that he would not be driving for the Silver Arrows if he didn't have championship-winning potential. In an interview carried by GPFans, the Austrian said:
“George [Russell] is a champion in the making and he was a champion in all the junior categories – in F3, F2, as a rookie. We would have never put him in a Mercedes if we didn’t believe he can be a future World Champion.”
George Russell has already earned his stripes in the lower formulae, having won karting championships as well as the GP3 series (now F3) world title and the F2 world title. He followed this up by joining Williams in F1 in 2019 before spending three seasons at the back of the grid.
The Briton then made the move to Mercedes at the end of 2021 to take the seat vacated by Valtteri Bottas after the Finn moved to Alfa Romeo.
Following his P2 finish at the Circuit Zandvoort, Russell has maintained his impeccable record of being in the top five of every race he has completed this year.
