George Russell issues reminder to Lewis Hamilton as Brit left unsatisfied
George Russell insists he’s “not satisfied” with simply trying to match Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes as the young Brit wants to prove he’s better than the seven-time world champion. Russell impressed in his debut season at Mercedes with Hamilton finishing behind a team-mate in the Drivers’ Championship for only the third time in his career.
Hamilton has been back on top this year with 72 points between them heading into the season finale in Abu Dhabi this weekend. It’s been another frustrating year for both Mercedes drivers as they’ve fallen short of rivalling Red Bull for race wins.
Hamilton has held the edge over his team-mate for most of the year, although two of Russell’s retirements this year came in races where the 38-year-old finished on the podium. Missed opportunities are what Russell feels have cost him the most this year with his attention quickly turning to 2024 where he hopes to be challenging Red Bull.
But the 25-year-old also wants to get back on top in the Mercedes garage to give Hamilton something to think about next year. “I’ve been on Lewis’s level, on average, throughout this year,” he told the Telegraph.
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“And I’m not satisfied with just being on his level. I want to be ahead of him. But I’ve also got to be realistic. I’m going up against the greatest driver of all time. He’s definitely not a bad benchmark.
“And, you know, I think quali statistics, if you include sprint races, we’re exactly the same. And pace-wise, we’re generally the same as well. So there are positives. And to be honest I’d prefer to be sat here without the results, but with the pace.
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“Rather than saying ‘Oh, we lucked into a result here or we lucked into a result there’ when actually I was a tenth or two off the pace.”
Russell hasn’t lost any confidence in his own ability from some below-par results this year either and believes Mercedes are in a good position to build from heading into 2024.
He added: “For my part, I’m excited. I feel good within myself. And next year is a clean slate for everybody. I hope for a season where I can perform and get the results as I did in 2022, or at least maximise results as I did in 2022. My confidence hasn’t been dented whatsoever.”
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