George Russell lifts the lid on being ‘pushed’ by Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes

George Russell feels he is “holding my own” in the tough battle against Lewis Hamilton having being “pushed” further than ever before by the seven-time World Champion.

The British duo are in their second year together as team-mate at Mercedes and, whilst round one went to Russell in F1 2022, Hamilton is due to take the second round after bouncing back during the F1 2023 campaign.

但是,despite a 62-point gap between the two this year, Russell still thinks he is showcasing his talent against one of the most decorated World Champions to have ever graced the sport.

Lewis Hamilton pushing George Russell to new limits

“I can very, very confidently sit here and say there’s probably five drivers on this grid that you put them in the best car, they will win the championship,” Russell told the Beyond the Grid podcast.

“I have no doubt about that. Of course, Lewis [Hamilton] is one of those guys and if I’m going head to head with him week in week out, you know, that gives me the benchmark.

“Also I don’t think I’ve ever been pushed in my whole career like I’ve been pushed in the last year and a half so to see that I’m swimming and swimming well gives me so much faith in myself and so much confidence.

“There’s sort of no doubt now that I truly believe in myself and the team believe in me. And that’s been really down to the fact that being team-mates with Lewis and I have held my own, so that now I can just focus on my job and go out there week in, week out and just try and maximise the performance.”

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Russell was also asked by host Tom Clarkson what has been his favourite moment so far in Mercedes colours and the answer is an unsurprising one.

“Yeah, I think it does have to be Brazil [2022, when Russell won the race] because it felt earned. In Sahkir [where Russell deputised for an ill Lewis Hamilton in 2020], it all happened so quick.

“It was almost like too good to be true. And almost, if I won that race, I feel like it would have just been too good.

“I think I maybe wouldn’t have appreciated future victories, or the victory in Brazil, as much as I did, or as much as it deserves, because Brazil truly felt earned for all the hard work everybody put in, the hard work I had put in with the pressure that I was under from Lewis for the last 15 laps of the race.

“I think he is the greatest driver of all time. And, you know, every single weekend I go out practice, qualy, race, you’re directly compared to the greatest driver of all time.

“Having that sort of fair fight was extraordinarily rewarding for me and, and why it is an incredibly satisfying position for me to be in and such a privileged position to be in is because not many drivers get that chance.”

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