George Russell Reveals Why He Was Faster Than Lewis Hamilton After Mercedes Exit

Saajan Jogia | Jan 2, 2025

Nov 23, 2024; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Mercedes AMG Petronas driver George Russell (63) celebrates his race victory of the Las Vegas Grand Prix at Las Vegas Circuit. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images / Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Mercedes driver George Russell revealed that his "natural driving style" in 2024 complemented the nature of the current ground effect car, which helped him outperform his former teammate Lewis Hamilton in most qualifying sessions of the season. Russell believes he didn't see anything wrong with the current generation of cars that Hamilton struggled with.

Mercedes' journey in the current ground effect era since 2022 has been an extremely challenging one as it struggled to come to terms with a car that bounced severely and lacked pace. It was only last year when the team managed to secure four victories as it overcame the complexities of the current car.

However, with still a long way to go before it can challenge the top teams under varying conditions and on different kinds of circuits, Russell reckons he has found a way to make peace with the current car, something the seven-time world champion struggled with throughout 2024.

Hamilton acknowledged during the final races of his last season with Mercedes that his qualifying pace had declined. He noted feeling more at ease with the car during free practice sessions, only for something to shift unexpectedly during qualifying, thereby impacting his performance.

However, Russell seems to be getting the grip of the current car, even going to the extent of challenging Max Verstappen in a championship fight in 2025. When asked if his driving style aligned with the cars of the ground effect era, Russell said:

“I think probably my natural driving style has worked well in these cars.

“But, equally, my qualifying record against my team-mates in the previous generation was good and in every category my qualifying records have been strong.”

He added:

“I don't think there's anything particular with this generation, but, obviously, Lewis has been my toughest team-mate, so I think that's why it's been highlighted a bit more”.

Hamilton's aggressive steering inputs and tail-happy driving style are a contrast to Russell's stable approach to corners, which is believed to help him better manage tire temperatures. This advantage proved crucial with the W15, as its rear tires were prone to overheating and losing traction when subjected to excessive spinning. Russell added that his approach to the current car evolved with experience. He explained:

“Experience is a huge part of it.

“You learn as the season goes on what you need to do to get the most out of the tyres, what's where you can exploit the car's strengths, where you need to be careful of the car's weaknesses.

“[Late in 2024], I know exactly where the strengths and the weaknesses are and the things I need to look out for.

“But, nevertheless, I think everybody gains that experience as the season goes on.

“But also dealing with negative results – I think I've been pretty good at just closing that chapter and moving on and learning from it, whereas I think my younger self would probably dwell on something a bit longer.

“I remember in 2022 I had a run of really bad races. It was the first time that season I was off the pace compared to Lewis.

“It was kind of the first time in my career I've been off the pace and that probably hindered me for one or two more races [than it should have].

“Whereas, now, even in an FP3 session, if I'm behind him, or even in the Q2 session, if I'm behind him, I don't stress. I know it doesn't matter what's happened before.

“It’s that one lap in Q3 that will make a difference.”