George Russell signs long term Mercedes contract

All-Brit lineup for the Brackley team from 2022 onwards.

After months of speculation, Mercedes have confirmed that George Russell will race for them alongside Lewis Hamilton in 2022, after Russell signed a long-term deal with the Brackley-based side.

After Valtteri Bottas’ announcement on Monday, that the Finn will race for Alfa Romeo from 2022 onwards, it was only a matter of time before Russell was confirmed as the next Mercedes driver. Russell has been in a rich vein of form of late and even scored his maiden podium at the Belgian Grand Prix this season. Along with scoring his maiden points for Williams, Russell has been constantly outperforming the Williams car which is the seventh or eighth best car on the grid.

Russell, who made his Formula One debut with Williams in 2019, had endured two pointless seasons as the Williams struggled to finish above the other cars on the grid. Following a revamp at the team last season that saw Sir Frank Williams and former team boss Claire Williams leave the team, under new team principal Jost Capito, Williams have slowly begun their ascent to the front of the grid.

Russell, who is a Mercedes Academy Driver, is also managed by the Brackley team’s principal, Toto Wolff, and Wolff has backed Russell to make it to the big team.

Russell had already tasted what it feels like to drive a Mercedes last season at Bahrain, when Lewis Hamilton had tested positive for COVID, and he almost took a shock win in his first run with team before a pit-stop error led to the young Brit’s race being compromised.

Nevertheless, Russell had qualified agonisingly close to pole, behind Bottas, and outperformed the Finn on Sunday. His skill and talent with proper machinery was on display and the entire world including those at Mercedes took notice.

Speaking about his move, Russell said”

“It’s a special day for me personally and professionally, but also a day of mixed emotions. I’m excited and humbled to be joining Mercedes next year, which is a huge career step, but it also means I’ll be saying goodbye to my teammates and friends at Williams. It has been an honour working alongside every member of the team, and an honour to represent the Williams name in F1.

“Looking ahead to next season, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t absolutely buzzing. It’s a huge opportunity and one I want to grab with both hands. But I’m under no illusions as to the scale of the challenge; it’s going to be a steep learning curve. Valtteri has set a high bar, consistently delivering week in and week out, scoring wins, pole positions and helping win multiple championship titles. My target must be to reward the trust that Toto, the team, and the board have placed in me by ensuring I play my part in continuing that success and I want to do my new team-mates proud.

“Of course, one of those new teammates is in my opinion the greatest driver of all time. I’ve looked up to Lewis since I was in go-karts and the opportunity to learn from someone who has become a role model both on and off track can only benefit me as a driver, a professional, and a human being.

“For now, though, I have nine more races as a Williams driver, and I want to make sure they are the best nine of my time with the team. Then, and only then, can I turn my attention to 2022.”

Mercedes’ boss Toto Wolff also spoke about Russell joining the team and about the Bottas-Hamilton partnership and what it means to the team after Bottas leaves:

“This hasn’t been an easy process or a straightforward decision for us. Valtteri has done a fantastic job over the past five seasons and he has made an essential contribution to our success and to our growth. Together with Lewis, he has built a benchmark partnership between two team-mates in the sport, and that has been a valuable weapon in our championship battles and pushed us to achieve unprecedented success.

“We are very happy to confirm that George will have the opportunity to take the next step in his career and join Mercedes. He has been a winner in every racing category – and the past three seasons with Williams have given us a taste of what the future could hold for him in F1. Now, it is our challenge together to help him continue learning within our environment and alongside Lewis, the greatest F1 driver of all time.

“I am confident that as their relationship grows, they will form a strong team and deliver for Mercedes on and off the track in the years ahead. It’s a weight off our shoulders to have our plans for 2022 clear and announced; but now, our focus returns to the final nine races of this season and putting everything into our challenge for this year’s world championships.”

Russell will join the reigning champions as the new regulations are introduced in the sport and the German team will hope that the young Brit will soak in all the experience from Hamilton during their time together and then lead the team in the future to new heights.

The task, though, is cut out for Russell. With Bottas having helped Mercedes secure four back-to-back championships, Russell knows the room for error at Mercedes is minimal to none.

With Russell’s Mercedes confirmation done, it leaves the Williams pairing pending, but it seems as if Nicholas Latifi will keep his seat and is mostly likely to be partnered by Red Bull’s reserve driver Alex Albon.