Mercedes keeping George Russell waiting on future deal

Mercedes

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Mercedes keeping Russell waiting on future deal

Rumours had suggested the Silver Arrows could announce Russell at his home race

Sam Hall

Tuesday 13 July 2021 19:00

George Russell has confirmed there will be no announcement with regard to his F1 future at the British Grand Prix despite the Williams driver being heavily linked with a switch for 2022.

Mercedes announced a new two-year deal with seven-time F1 champion Lewis Hamilton ahead of the Austrian Grand Prix two weeks ago and it was widely speculated the team was gearing up to announce Russell at Silverstone.

Russell, a Mercedes junior driver, will come to the end of a three-year deal with Williams at the end of the year, leaving him free to take the seat currently occupied by Valtteri Bottas, the Finn also out of contract after the Abu Dhabi season finale.

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Addressing the speculation on the F1 Nation podcast, Russell said: “I signed with Mercedes five or six years ago now. That is 100 per cent true.

"As everybody knows, they look after me but with regard to my drive next year, nothing has been signed or sealed and nothing will be announced in Silverstone.

“I can let you know that.”

Could Russell gamble on a Williams resurgence?

With a completely new set of aerodynamic regulations coming into force for 2022, it is impossible to rule out any team from being a frontrunner in the immediate future.

Williams has undergone a number of changes since Dorilton Capital acquired the team in mid-2020 with Jost Capito recently assimilating team principal responsibilities into his role as CEO.

Reflecting on a potentially bright future for the team, Russell added: “I’ve said this numerous times, I think the change of structure and everything that is going on at Williams is incredibly exciting.

"Obviously, the team has finished last for the past three years in a row. I’m pretty confident that will not be the case next year.

“Things are really making a turn for the better. Things are really getting in line and in place and Jost has done a fantastic job building that structure for everybody to be more efficient, more streamlined.

“Every single decision that has been made so far, I think has been a good one for the right reasons and I see no reason why over the course of the next number of years Williams can’t find their way back to the front.

“That might sound silly or stupid now, but you’ve only got to look back at I think it was 2013 when Valtteri [Bottas] and [Pastor] Maldonado were in the car, they finished ninth or 10th in the constructors and came out in the following year and finished third with podiums in most races and pole positions.

“This sport can change in a heartbeat when you’ve got these big regulation changes and fingers crossed for Williams it changes for the better.”