Following accusations by Mercedes of favoring George Russell over his soon-to-be-leaving teammate, Lewis Hamilton, George Russell’s relationship with the driver was questioned.
Reactions to rumors that George Russell and Lewis Hamilton are at odds have been sharp.
With Hamilton expected to join Ferrari before the 2019 season, the Mercedes duo is in their last season together. In Monaco, he hinted that Russell might be receiving special treatment from the team because he was leaving soon.
There have been rumors of mounting tension within the squad since they gave him exclusive possession of their most recent front wing upgrade. However, Russell dispelled any talk of a split in Monaco, where he qualified ahead of Hamilton for the seventh time this year in eight races.
According to GPblog, Russell quickly silenced questions about whether his relationship with Hamilton had soured with a concise seven-word response: “No, not at all. The relationship is going well,” he answered.
Hamilton, on the other hand, appeared dissatisfied with the way things are going after finishing seventh in both the race and qualifying, two places behind Russell.
Hamilton alluded to a sense of inequality, despite Mercedes’ insistence that they are remaining impartial, according to the Express. “It’s just great to see that we are bringing upgrades,” he remarked. “I anticipated it would be difficult to out-qualify George because he has the upgraded component.” However, after qualifying, I’m not sure why.
“It’s annoying that I already know for sure that I’m going to lose two tenths heading into qualifying, and I’m not really sure how to address that at this time. The laps were excellent; I’m not driving any differently; there was just something missing.
“I don’t think I’ll be able to qualify ahead of George, especially this year, but we just need to keep working hard because the competition is fierce.” When asked to elaborate on his reasoning, Hamilton gave a hazy “We’ll see” response.
Mercedes CEO Toto Wolff reiterated that Hamilton and Russell are being treated equally, implying that the former may be overanalyzing the circumstances. The head of the team asked: “Aren’t all drivers occasionally a little skeptical?
Even in the most heated rivalries among teammates, our team has consistently shown that we strive to strike a balance between doing what is right and being open and honest.
“As a driver, I can appreciate that you want the best for the team and yourself, and occasionally you might doubt that when things aren’t going your way. However, we are fully committed to providing both drivers with the greatest vehicles and tactics as a team.
“We’re attempting to maximize the benefits of our relationship with Hamilton in order to get the most out of our final season together. And because everyone wants to perform to the best, the relationship between drivers and teams can occasionally become tense.”
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