F1 News: George Russell Makes Bold Claim - "I Can Beat Anybody On This Grid"

Mercedes driver George Russell has made a confident claim as F1 prepares for the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Mercedes' George Russell has confidently claimed that he "can beat anybody on this grid" amid the up and down performance of the W14 so far this season.

Speaking ahead of the British Grand Prix, Russell was quizzed by the media on how he has dealt with the mixed performance of the W14 so far this season. 

He responded:

“I think it’s important sometimes not to overthink things, go back to basics, and work on the processes with the team.

“What I need as a driver to maximise my performance, what I’m looking for with the car.

“Just not overthink things sometimes. I know that if I tick all those boxes, I can beat anybody on this grid and I think it’s important that you do tick those boxes – we often fall into a trap of wanting to do more, and work on finer details, work even harder.

"And sometimes you overcomplicate things and it’s counterproductive, so it’s striking that right balance because I’m always striving for more, pursuing more but, sometimes, you can’t overwork, and it’s gonna hinder your performance.”

As the 2023 F1 season gears up for its summer break, many teams are contemplating shifting their developmental focus to the 2024 cars. Russell, however, is not phased by his competitors, such as Ferrari and Aston Martin, potentially gaining an edge by redirecting their resources earlier. 

Despite the upcoming 2024 regulations being a minor tweak of the 2023 rules, which were already a modification of the 2022 ground effect regulations, Russell is confident that Mercedes' continued focus on the 2023 car won't put them at a disadvantage.

The British driver stated:

“No, not really, because I think with the stable regulations between this year and next year, the cars kind of roll into next season anyway.

“Obviously, in the season of 2021 when you’ve got this new big change, there were concerns in regards to that. This year, we will finish the season with a car that has been an evolution into the following year.”