3 reasons why Lewis Hamilton-George Russell partnership will not work

Lewis Hamilton and George Russell will partner for the first time at Mercedes in the F1 2022 season. The combination of a young and hungry upstart and an established legend has, however, often turned out to be a recipe for disaster. Be it Nelson Piquet-Nigel Mansell, or Ayrton Senna-Alain Prost in the '80s, or Fernando Alonso-Lewis Hamilton in the 2000s.

There may have been deviations, like Francois Cevert-Jackie Stewart or Niki Lauda-Alain Prost. More recently, the partnership between Valtteri Bottas-Lewis Hamilton was cordial and even helped the team grow.

When it comes to the combination of George Russell and Lewis Hamilton, however, the partnership spells fireworks in all probability. In this piece, we take a look at why the Hamilton-Russell partnership at Mercedes will not work.

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3 reasons why Lewis Hamilton-George Russell partnership is untenable

#1 George Russell is a top tier talent

George Russell is one of the brightest talents on the grid

George Russell had one of the best resumes in the junior category before he made his way to Formula 1. He had won both the F3 and F2 championships, dominating the latter that had Lando Norris as his direct competition.

Russell's impact on the grid ever since he stepped into the world of F1 has been hard to ignore. From almost winning in his very official race with Mercedes at Sakhir last year to putting a Williams in P2 in a wet qualifying session at Spa, Russell's talent is undeniable.

Russell has proved that he belongs to the top tier of Formula 1 and he's hungry for success. He's not coming to Mercedes to take on the role played by Bottas. Rather, he's coming to Mercedes to beat Lewis Hamilton.

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#2 Lewis Hamilton has not had great relationships with competitive teammates

Lewis Hamilton has had his fair share of teammates in his illustrious career. Although he might call Bottas his 'best teammate ever', he's had run-ins with a few teammates in the past. His rivalry with Alonso at McLaren kicked off his career in Formula 1. Hamilton, in this case a young prodigy, fought tooth and nail with the Spaniard for the title throughout his debut season.

Hamilton's relationship was more of a rivalry with Alonso and Nico Rosberg. The relationship with Jenson Button, was mostly cordial, however, the two drivers would come to blows whenever they had a car capable of fighting for the win.

The only teammates Hamilton has enjoyed a cordial relationship with were Bottas and Heikki Kovalainen. This was pretty evident when they were easily a step below him in terms of driving prowess.

The same cannot be said of, or expected from, Russell. On the contrary, Russell is expected to be a driver who should be a level above Bottas when it comes to speed and driving abilities. If that becomes the case, then a repeat of the partnership with Rosberg or Alonso would not be that far fetched.

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#3 There will be a conflict of interest for Mercedes

Both Lewis Hamilton and George Russell are expected to be in proximity to each other in terms of pace. What that does is, it puts Mercedes in a state of conundrum. In a scenario where both drivers are fighting for the win, be it race or championship, whom the team will support is a pertinent question.

Mercedes will be faced with two choices: stay loyal to Hamilton and favor him in the fight, or identify Russell as the team's future and support his growth. It is such a conflict of interest that could cause indecision within the squad and ultimately hurt the morale of the entire team. To add to this, it leaves the team in a catch-22 situation that could boil over and hurt the entire ecosystem.

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