“I Felt It”: George Russell Speaks His Truth on High-Pressure Relationship With His Father

Human relationships are complex. Some are easy to maintain and require low maintenance. However, there is always a flip side as relationships can become extremely difficult to maintain, even sour sometimes. And F1 drivers know all about that with the competitive nature of the sport. However, the same competitiveness sometimes seeps into a family and George Russell can tell you exactly what that translates to.

We are talking about the competitiveness that sport brings out in one and how that affected Russell’s relationship with his father. Russell’s father worked really hard to see his son reach and drive in the pinnacle of motorsport. Right now we see Russell in all the glitz and glory. However, the road that leads to F1 made his relationship with his father arguably difficult.

Russell revealed this aspect of his life in The High-Performance Podcast. He said, “I probably didn’t have the greatest relationship with my father through those karting days because we were like a race team. It was almost like we weren’t there to have a good time. We were kind of there to win. And if we won, we had a good time, of course.”

“And we would always stop off at KFC on our way home whenever we won a race. As a kid, I really enjoyed that. So that was kind of my reward at the end of the weekend if I did a good job. Obviously, those moments were so special.”

“But equally on the flip side, if it doesn’t go to plan, I felt it. But then I would see it affect my father. It for sure added an element of pressure,” he added.

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The Formula 1 Grand Prix winner is certainly making his father proud now. However, during the development years, the relationship and the dynamic became tough because of the competitiveness and the financial pressure, something Russell started to see as he matured.

George Russell talks about the time he saw his father struggle

The Brit continued on the podcast about his realization of his father’s struggle. The Mercedes man realized his father’s plight when he turned 16.

“When I got to a maturer age. You know, 16 and realizing right, my father’s been through not just ten years of this with me, it’s ten years prior with my brother as well. That’s 20 years’ worth of passion and hard work. I need to almost not let him down,” he said.

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Similar to Lewis Hamilton, Russell had a difficult relationship with his father. However, he’s making him proud now! Do you think Russell will make him prouder and win a world championship in the future?