After having a development going in the wrong direction for two years, Mercedes have finally found sustainable performance with the W15. The Brackley outfit had come to the Hungarian GP weekend on the back of two consecutive wins.
Ahead of the weekend, George Russell was quite pompous and highlighted that had Mercedes found this performance earlier, Lewis Hamilton may not have decided to leave for Ferrari.
After seeing the improved performance of the Silver Arrows, there are questions about whether Hamilton has made the right decision to move to Ferrari for 2025.
The Scuderia has lost ground this season to Mercedes and McLaren after a strong start. So, while discussing his teammate’s early decision on his future, Russell was smug.
As quoted by The Mirror, he said, “I don’t think he would have left if the team was performing like this. No way he would have left, for sure not”.
After a run of consistent upgrades, Russell feels Mercedes are setting a good foundation for next year and even the 2026 power unit is looking strong, which is an optimistic update for them.
“I think for him it’s exciting to have that change. But of course, if the team you’re currently with are winning races and everything is looking super great for the future, you just want to be in the fastest car possible and it doesn’t matter what colour that is.”, he added.
Naturally after winning two consecutive races, the wind is in Mercedes’ sails. Russell rightly said no one would want to leave a team in such a favorable scenario. However, Hamilton’s decision is firm and he will be donning the Ferrari red from the 2025 season onwards.
About Ferrari, they are working to undo the effects of the troublesome Spanish GP upgrades in Hungary. Although, the Maranello-based team needs a major step up in performance to avoid falling behind McLaren and Mercedes in the championship standings.
