George Russell’s response to doubtlessly being overwhelmed by Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli has been questioned forward of an important yr for the Briton.
Russell steps as much as develop into Mercedes staff chief in 2025 following Lewis Hamilton’s defection to Ferrari, and has been paired with protege Antonelli – who as soon as raced in Nico Rosberg’s karting faculty.
The four-time grand prix winner can be getting into the ultimate yr of his Mercedes contract, with boss Toto Wolff making no secret of his need to lure Max Verstappen away from Pink Bull, a state of affairs that will see both Russell or Antonelli faraway from their race seat.
Throughout his three years alongside Hamilton, Russell completed forward twice within the standings, in each 2022 and 2024, and loved his most profitable season within the final marketing campaign, comprehensively out-performing the out-going septuple champion.
Antonelli is regarded by some as ‘the brand new Max Verstappen’, and has proved fast throughout his testing runs and follow periods up to now, with former Pink Bull driver Christian Klien intrigued to see how Russell would react to being overwhelmed by Antonelli.
“It’s nonetheless slightly unclear to me precisely the place Mercedes stands, however the reality is that I’m trying ahead to Antonelli’s season,” Klien advised RacingNews365.
“From what I’ve seen, he has a really aggressive driving fashion and I’m at all times a fan of such drivers.
“Even though it’s nonetheless unclear how good the Mercedes might be, I do suppose it will likely be a pleasant battle between Antonelli and George Russell.
“Antonelli additionally makes it fascinating to see how Russell would deal with it if such a younger man instantly beat him.
“I do not suppose Antonelli might be very constant straight away, however from what I’ve seen of him I undoubtedly suppose he can begin shocking positively throughout some race weekends, and when that occurs, it will likely be fascinating to see how Russell offers with it.
“Russell begins a season for the primary time as Mercedes staff chief, and he now has to step up and I’m curious to see how that may go for him. I believe he can do this, however nonetheless the function has modified a bit.
“With the departure of Hamilton, Mercedes is coping with a breath of contemporary air throughout the staff and that will additionally simply have its benefits.”
