George Russell on seeing F2 rivals Norris & Albon in better F1 cars

George Russell has revealed how he dealt with driving for a Williams team struggling to stay afloat, whilst seeing F2 rivals Lando Norris and Alex Albon have early success in their F1 careers.

Russell is now a race-winner in F1 having produced a sublime performance in Brazil earlier this month, and he goes into the off-season on the back of what was, overall, a solid first campaign for him for Mercedes, despite the team's overall struggles.

Indeed, it was his first with the Silver Arrows after three years of impressing at Williams, though the points tallies won't have suggested that given where the Grove team has unfortunately been with their car in recent seasons.

A team that uses Mercedes power, Russell joined them in 2019 for his rookie F1 campaign with him part of the Merc driver programme, and he saw Norris and Albon, two drivers he rose through the ranks with in junior formula, also graduate from F2 at the same time, with Norris joining McLaren and Albon heading to the then-Toro Rosso team, before a Red Bull chance mid-2019.

In 2018, though, Russell had actually beaten the pair of them to win the F2 championship and so he was asked by the High Performance Podcast about how it felt seeing two rivals, but also drivers he clearly has a good relationship with, getting better seats for their first years in F1 on the back of their final F2 season together, as well as competing for a Williams team that was in financial peril.

"[2019] was a really unique season for me," said Russell.

"My first year in Formula 1, joining Williams and a team that was on the brink of bankruptcy, it was racing to survive, it wasn't racing to perform. The team was racing to survive and save the 800 people's jobs at stake.

"I got to the first race in Australia, I'm here in Formula 1, you know, almost one dream accomplished and we go out on track and we're four seconds off the pace, the car's falling apart and we're being lapped two or three times in the race. You kind of think to yourself, you know, is this the dream?"

"But I think I've always had quite a rational view on things. Whilst seeing Alex in a Red Bull scoring podiums and, you know, being the man to a degree, and Lando equally always into the points, was sort of difficult to digest, cause I'd just come from Formula 2 where I beat them, I thought that even though they're finishing in the points and they're scoring podiums, I'm not here to score points or podiums - I'm here to win and I wanna win.

"And even though they were finishing ahead of me, we're all going through this journey sort of together. I was part of Mercedes and I felt like my time will come.

"I think every time you're in a difficult situation, you've gotta try and look at the positives from it. I was driving at the back of a grid, kind of under the radar, I was making a few mistakes that season, but not many people noticed because the spotlight wasn't on me. The spotlight was on the guys at the front. Equally, the spotlight was on Lando and Alex, and if ever they made a mistake, the whole world knew about it.

"So I saw this as an opportunity that, you know, I'm in Formula 1, going to 21 different countries, 21 different circuits and this is my opportunity to learn and perhaps try things that, for example, Alex and Lando didn't have the opportunity to, because the spotlight was on them every single weekend."

Video: George Russell on his rise to Formula 1

Russell also revealed how he would lower his expectations and targets and what qualified as success, giving him a better perspective on his own performance:

"I would celebrate when I was only half a second away from 18th on the grid rather than being a second away, because that was relative success and for me, that was kind of like a pole position. And if I didn't celebrate those moments, that 21-race season would've felt incredibly long. That helped me get through that season and to progress as a driver.

"I think every single opportunity, every single year, whether it's a good year or bad year, adds to your sort of development and it made me who I am. If I was in a Mercedes fighting for victories, I wouldn't have had those experiences.

"I have probably been through, in that regard, maybe more than what Alex or Lando have. Lando's been at McLaren now for several years. He's been fighting for the odd podium or pole position for several years now.

JEDDAH, SAUDI ARABIA - MARCH 25: Lando Norris of Great Britain and McLaren and George Russell of Great Britain and Mercedes walk in the Paddock before practice ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Saudi Arabia at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit on March 25, 2022 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)

"Whereas I've been on sort of every end of the spectrum and you've gotta see that as an advantage, you know, he hasn't been right at the back of a grid - equally he's not been right at the front of the grid in the McLaren, and it's no through no fault of his own - Lando's an exceptional driver but you know, that's an advantage I've gotta take from that."