It’s do or die for George Russell come 2025. According to reports, Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has already signed 17-year-old Andrea Kimi Antonelli to replace Lewis Hamilton next year.
In a way, this increases the pressure on Russell, whose presence could be proved redundant if a teenager outclasses him. Furthermore, Antonelli’s ‘family-like’ relationship with Wolff threatens Russell’s position within the team.
Recently, Antonelli opened up on his bond with the Mercedes boss, describing it as “very good, and not only in a professional sense”.
The F2 racer shared an anecdote of how Wolff re-instilled confidence in him after his qualifying failure at Silverstone. And Voila! The next day, Antonelli won his first F2 race. This growing relationship has made F1TV presenter Will Buxton highlight how George Russell could soon be stuck between a rock and a hard place.
“Regardless of who else is available, if your team boss puts someone in who he thinks is a once-in-a-generation talent and a talent who is managed by your team boss his whole career, that’s not good,” Buxton told F1maximaal about Wolff’s Antonelli choice for 2025.
“Antonelli is almost like family to Wolff, and he has the potential to be extremely good. So George Russell really needs to show a higher level than ever before. If George gets beaten by an 18-year-old, it’s game over, it’s that simple.”
Buxton also explored the consequence of Russell getting beaten by bringing Wolff’s pursuit of Max Verstappen into the picture.
“If Antonelli beats Russell, why do you still need Verstappen?” Buxton asked. “If Antonelli is the next Verstappen, do you still need him?” The British journalist’s views aren’t exactly bizarre.
If the 17-year-old Italian can skip racing in F3 and still win his first F2 race so soon, he might be more than ready for F1. But from Toto Wolff’s point of view, he has a newly resurrected ship to manage. And he doesn’t want to disrupt the peace within by overlooking Russell’s abilities.
Since Toto Wolff took over Mercedes’ reins in 2013, Lewis Hamilton is the only lead driver the team has seen. Nico Rosberg did upset his best friend turned arch-rival in 2016, but from 2017 onwards, it was Hamilton’s era again.
But with the 7-time champion abruptly leaving, George Russell has to shoulder the added responsibilities. Though he has won a race this year, is he really ready to lead the Silver Arrows?
“With all the Lewis discussion, something that has not been talked about enough is George. George has the potential to be the next lead driver in the team. He is of the generation of Lando [Norris] and [Charles] Leclerc and some of the others. I couldn’t wish for a new team leader when Lewis leaves, no doubt about that,” Wolff emphasized.
This vote of confidence was very necessary for Russell, who hasn’t had the best of luck this year. He failed to convert Pole position in Canada into a victory and got disqualified from the Belgian GP for an underweight car.
Though he has outperformed Hamilton 10-4 in qualifying, he is 34 points short of his Ferrari-bound teammate in the drivers’ championship (116 and 150).
The second half of 2024 will be a bigger test for him with Mercedes’ W15 ready to fight for more victories. Will he rise to the challenge or succumb to his departing teammate’s pressure?
