Quite easily, the surprise of the 2022 season was George Russell outscoring Lewis Hamilton. While Hamilton was busy struggling with the W13, the newly promoted Williams man was scoring point after point. This start to life at the front of the grid among the big boys by George Russell changed everyone’s perspective of him. However, despite his incredibly consistent performances in 2022, there are still experts who are not convinced. There are experts who believe Russell is not in the same league as Hamilton, Max Verstappen, or even Charles Leclerc.
Russell claimed the feeder series ladder with back-to-back championship wins in F3 and F2, similar to Charles Leclerc. However, Russell cannot convince former team manager turned journalist Peter Windsor of his abilities. Speaking on his YouTube channel as quoted by Motorsport, Windsor put Leclerc on the same level as Verstappen and Hamilton, but not Russell.
“I’ve always seen Charles in the same place as Lewis and Max,” Windsor said. “I think he has everything great race drivers have, and that shows in his driving.” (Translated by Google)
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“George is a little different in this regard. He has incredible performance that’s definitely on the edge. But when things go wrong, engineers don’t guess right in settings, or variables come into play, he has less room to play in these kinds of situations.” he concluded.
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Russell’s maiden win isn’t enough to convince Windsor, among other critiques, of his abilities behind a single-seater. However, Russell isn’t fazed by any comments or opinions as he has only one goal in sight.
George Russell is ready to fight everyone, including Lewis Hamilton for the championship
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The Brit collected a lot of plaudits for his fifth-place finish in the championship table ahead of the great Lewis Hamilton. However, even a second-place finish is insignificant for Russell compared to his goal. The ultimate goal that every F1 driver dreams of achieving! He communicated his headstrong outlook on life in F1 during a conversation with Square Mile.
He said, “In those three years at Williams, I might have been able to compete a little further in front, but if I hadn’t driven a Mercedes, I wouldn’t have fought for the world title anyway. So what’s the difference? Ultimately I want to win titles and whether I’m fighting at the back of the field or for position seven, there’s no difference for me.”
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This approach perhaps will make Russell world champion material if not world champion. Despite what everyone says, the Brit has self-belief and he must maintain that till the very end.