George Russell made it into the big leagues in Formula 1, but the young racer is under no illusions, as he realizes the need to perform to remain with Mercedes and fight for the Championship.
George Russell showed his qualities as an upcoming F1 driver during his three years at Williams between 2019 and 2021, always outdriving the slow cars the Grove outfit put at his disposal, and was finally given the nod by Mercedes to join them and replace Valtteri Bottas in 2022.
Mercedes have been struggling this season, with their W13 F1 car - built to the 2022 regulations - proving to be a nasty piece of kit, but Russell has performed well considering.
But the young racer is not taking anything for granted, and understands the need to continue performing at the highest level to make sure he keeps his seat at Mercedes.
Looking at matters objectively
"I like to look at things a bit more objectively," Russell revealed on Beyond The Grid. "Things can change very quickly in Formula 1 and signing a piece of paper to join the greatest team of this era, without doubt, is obviously a huge moment.
"But if I don’t perform, if I go and get my arse kicked by the greatest driver of all time, what does it mean? Because in a year’s time I’ll probably be out the door," the 24-year-old admitted.
"It was a huge step on my ladder," Russell said of joining Mercedes. "But it’s sort of like the image of the guy climbing the mountain – he thinks he's at the top and he looks up and the peak’s miles away, and you get there and there’s another peak, and that’s kind of the way I look at it.
"There is a lot to celebrate for a moment like that. I want to be a world champion, I want to win races, and signing that contract didn’t guarantee anything," a pragmatic Russell maintained.
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