126-race star is now considered F1’s most underrated driver by ‘a lot of people’ in the paddock

The 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix will go down in Formula 1 history for several reasons.

Red Bull Racing driver Max Verstappen secured his fourth consecutive Drivers’ Championship although not in the dramatic circumstances he may have hoped for.

A fifth-place finish was enough for Verstappen to achieve his goal, with McLaren star Lando Norris following him home in P6 with the fastest lap to his name.

Verstappen’s monumental achievement overshadowed a landmark race for Mercedes.

George Russell secured the third victory of his 126-race Formula 1 career, with teammate Lewis Hamilton coming home behind him after starting 10th on the grid.

It was the 60th one-two finish in Mercedes’ F1 history and while it won’t have any impact on their position in the Constructors’ Championship, it will give team principal Toto Wolff confidence that things are heading in the right direction for 2025.

Hamilton suggested after the race that Mercedes may not fully understand why they were so quick, but winning races is much more important than knowing why they’re winning races.

It was also a vital weekend for Russell ahead of Hamilton’s departure and his new role as team leader at Mercedes.

Speaking on the Chequered Flag Podcast, journalist Rosanna Tennant shared what she had heard from people in the paddock about the three-time race winner.

George Russell considered Formula 1’s most underrated driver by many in the paddock

Talking about her interaction with Russell after the race, Tennant said: “After I’d asked my questions to George, a journalist next to me asked him whether this was a good confidence boost for him going into next year given that he’s going to have a new teammate in Kimi Antonelli with Lewis Hamilton departing for Ferrari.

“And he said I didn’t need a confidence boost, look, I’m up against a seven-time world champion that’s a challenge enough isn’t it and of course reading between the lines he beat that seven-time world champion today and he beat him to pole position yesterday.

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“So yeah, I think there’s a lot of people saying in the paddock that George Russell is one of the most underrated drivers or maybe underappreciated drivers because actually what he has been able to do against Lewis Hamilton is pretty impressive.”

Mercedes banking on George Russell to lead the post-Lewis Hamilton era

Although Kimi Antonelli will technically be the driver in Hamilton’s seat in 2025, Russell will be the man responsible for leading the team going forward.

Russell and Hamilton have different approaches to feedback, and Antonelli will have his thoughts on a car that if it’s anything like this year’s edition, will be incredibly unpredictable.

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Russell’s contract expires at the end of next year, although when Christian Horner suggested Red Bull could sign Russell if Verstappen left, Wolff was quick to show how much faith he has in the 26-year-old.

He said to the media, via Autosport: “I think he is always stirring s— up, it is part of the game.

“George is a Mercedes driver and has been forever and hopefully will be forever. We have a long contract with him.

“These two are the future. “They have been and will be Mercedes drivers, and therefore we have contracts with George and Kimi that go much longer, that are very complicated in terms of options, etc.

“Mercedes has always been a pressure cooker, but this is where we stand as a team today, we want to go with these two.”

Russell will hope that Mercedes want him ‘forever’ as long as the car is competitive, otherwise, he may be considering his options and hoping to shake off an underrated tag and instead begin achieving what he’s capable of.