Fernando Alonso got rid of his villain image this year after his on and off-track actions to support and help his team and his teammate. The Spaniard did it despite being infamous for the opposite kind of behavior. Nevertheless, George Russell seems to have learned a thing or two from Alonso as he cheekily praised Lewis Hamilton to get rid of the civil war rumors at Mercedes. What did George Russell compliment Hamilton with?

Lewis Hamilton and the Ferrari contract talks have been put to silence by Toto Wolff’s statement of Hamilton is close to signing an extension. However, the latest news on the contract is that the duration of the contract is not yet decided and that Lewis Hamilton wants a 5-year deal from Mercedes worth $319,000,000. It is speculated that George Russell was happy to have Hamilton around for a couple of years, but a 5-year contract would mean the 25-year-old will have to live in the shadow of the 7X World champion. Hence, speculations of a civil war in Mercedes came up. 

Despite the speculation of Russell being unsatisfied with Hamilton getting a 5-year deal, the F1 star has come out hailing Lewis Hamilton on his fitness and he believes that the 38-year-old still has many years of racing left inside of him. Russell explains that it is up to Hamilton’s motivation to keep racing as long as he’s enjoying what he’s doing. 

According to a Tweet by @fiagirly, George Russell said “You’ve only got to look at his skin – he looks like a 25-year-old! I think I’ve got a few more wrinkles than he has. I think there’s many years left in Lewis. I guess he’s at a stage now in his career that as long as he keeps on enjoying racing and he sees a chance to win, then why wouldn’t you continue? We both believe in this team.”

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This cheeky compliment by George Russell puts the civil war rumors because of Hamilton’s contract to bed. Nevertheless, Martin Brundle added another complexity to the situation at Mercedes as he advised something about Lewis Hamilton’s extension. 

Mercedes can use George Russell as a negotiation tool

George Russell outperformed Lewis Hamilton last season and is more than ready to take up the leadership role at the team. However, till the time Lewis Hamilton is with the team, it’s difficult to imagine Russell getting that role. However, Martin Brundle suggested that Mercedes can use this Russell performance as a tool while negotiating the contract details with Lewis Hamilton 

According to express.co.uk, Martin Brundle said, “Mercedes have some cards to play, one of them will be George Russell. Lewis will have some cards to pay, one of them will be an underperforming car and things he wants to do. I’m sure they are putting in place all sorts of milestones if you like for the future.”

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What do you make of George Russell’s cheeky comments? Will he be happy with Lewis Hamilton staying with the team for 5 more years?