Lewis Hamilton ‘didn’t want George Russell at Mercedes’ claims F1 insider

Lewis Hamilton reportedly “didn’t really want” George Russell as his new partner at Mercedes when he first came onboard in 2022.

Russell slid into the hot seat left by Valtteri Bottas, who was previously hailed as Hamilton’s ‘best team-mate’. Bottas took off to Alfa Romeo, leaving British F1 fans excited about the dynamic duo of Lewis and Russell.

However, Hamilton wasn’t exactly over the moon with the line-up shuffle, F1 expert Peter Windsor has claimed. The two Brits went head-to-head, with Russell taking an immediate edge before Hamilton flipped the script in 2023.

Even though Hamilton has often ended up playing catch-up to Russell this season, a thrilling victory at Silverstone – his first since 2021 – put him just a whisker behind, with a one-point difference in the standings.

Reflecting on Lewis’s spectacular win at Silverstone amidst a rollercoaster few years including Russell joining Mercedes, former F1 team head honcho Windsor commented on his YouTube channel, saying: “I think this race will be remembered because it was two and half years since Abu Dhabi 2021.

“Since everything that happened on that day when that eighth world championship was snatched from Lewis effectively on the last lap due to a mistake made by the race director, and it’s about everything that’s happened in Lewis’s life since then.

“A team-mate that he didn’t really want, George Russell, instead of Valtteri Bottas, and then perhaps even more significantly, a very uncompetitive Mercedes,” reports the Mirror.

Hamilton came back with a bang at Silverstone, clinching his first F1 win in over two years, after keeping the challenge of Max Verstappen at bay, ending a drought of 945 days without a top-spot finish.