Toto Wolff fires back at George Russell “underrated” comments: “Lucky to have him”

Mercedes team chief Toto Wolff has shot down claims that George Russell is “underrated” on the Formula 1 grid. 

Russell joined the Brackley outfit in 2022 after a three-year stint with Williams. Driving alongside the seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton before he left for Ferrari gave the Briton the perfect opportunity to learn how to lead the team. This year, Russell is taking rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli under his wing, and so far, the duo have gathered 57 points for the team. 

During an interview with Motorsport.com, Wolff addressed comments that the 27-year-old driver was underrated in the paddock. He explained:

“Not with us. Why is he underrated? I don’t know. He is a top, top driver and we are lucky to have him. The decision to take Kimi on board, we dared to do it because we knew that we have George as a benchmark. The car doesn’t go much faster than George and we know where the car will be with George, and that is the benchmark for Kimi.”

Russell signed with Mercedes at a time when he thought he would be able to fight for race wins. After an intense 2021 championship battle, Mercedes was a clear favourite along with rivals Red Bull going into 2022. However, the reality turned out to be the polar opposite. The Brackley-based squad opted for an ambitious zero sidepod concept for the W13 as the ground effect era began, which led to a host of issues with the car. Since then, the team has struggled with performance.

However, now that F1 is in the last year of the current regulations, the team appears to have turned things around and currently sits in second in the constructors’ standings behind McLaren.

Read our in-depth interview with Toto Wolff by clicking here.

Wolff explained that Russell “expected different” when he joined the team, stating:

“Exactly, he expected different. But you can also see George’s performance against Lewis, and today’s performance of Lewis against Charles Leclerc, clearly we are talking about a top driver.”

Russell’s current contract with Mercedes expires at the end of 2025. However, Wolff has hinted that he is keen to secure the British driver with a long-term contract.