Russell: Hamilton the most complete driver I've known
- Published on 25 Sep 2019 12:19
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- By: Dieter Rencken & Fergal Walsh
George Russell says that Lewis Hamilton is the most complete racing driver he has ever known, adding that he would be his "ultimate teammate".
Russell is currently in his rookie season in Formula 1, racing for Williams who is struggling at the back of the field.
The Briton is currently on zero points, but the 2018 Formula 2 champion has consistently out-performed teammate Robert Kubica this year.
When asked by media including GPToday.net who his ultimate teammate in F1 would be, Russell replied: "Lewis Hamilton. He's the most complete driver that I've ever come across. Just with the details and everything, it's exceptional."
Russell has learned 'quite a lot' from Hamilton
Before gaining his promotion to a full-time race seat this season, Russell, a Mercedes junior driver, worked with the German manufacturer while he competed in GP3 and Formula 2.
Russell says that he has learned "quite a lot" of things from Hamilton, and has tried to adopt them over to his driving still throughout his maiden year in F1.
"Firstly, I recognised that he doesn't just rely on natural talent to be quick," Russel said. "He goes into every single detail to try and be better and better. He's one of the most hardworking people I think I've come across in the paddock which I think shocks a lot of people.
"There have definitely been a few little techniques that I saw him doing that I've tried to adopt to help me go faster, especially in a race distance, less so over one lap."
Williams will 'definitely' have a better race car in 2020
Despite being in only his first season of F1, Russell says he has heavy communication with his engineers to improve the car, while also providing input on the 2020 challenger.
Russell is adamant that Williams will have a better race car next season, and that he has complete faith in the aerodynamic team to make gains.
"I'm always providing inputting on things outside of aerodynamic," Russell affirmed. "F1 at the moment is dominated by the aero, and I'm definitely not intelligent enough to understand any of this, I'll leave that to the genius'.
"But for everything else, I can cite how I want the brakes to work, the feeling in the steering wheel, the mechanical balance in the corner, the ride of the car over the kerbs, that's where I've been having a big input.
"The details all add up. But ultimately, you could have the best car underneath you, but if the aerodynamics aren't working as they should, then it's going to be slow.
"We'll definitely have a better race car next year, we're just putting our faith in the aero guys to do their job. At the moment we're definitely on course for a stronger next year."
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Replies (8)
Login to replyDert38
Posts: 377
It's discutable
f1dave
Posts: 782
The most complete driver that I've ever come across in my one year in F1.
ajpennypacker
Posts: 2,475
I think people have a hard time getting pass Lewis' personality and then don't truly appreciate his talent. But again, that's always the case with dominant drivers. Young people will have a hard time believing it, but guys like Ayrton Senna, Schumacher, Prost, Mika Hakkinen, Alonso (even today since it's too recent)... They all had a lot of critics "they can only win in dominant cars", "he crashes too much", "he's a dirty driver", "he is reckless and should be penalised", "he got beaten by this or that driver at the [fill in the blank] GP", "he is toxic for the team", "he doesn't know how to develop the car", "he's not fast enough."
All of these things were said about those drivers, but no serious observer of the sport would ever suggest that those drivers are anything other than legends. Hamilton has achieve more than every one of those drivers except Schumacher, it should be a slam dunk. Problem is that Hamilton is a pillock of track and it's to easy to hate him. I did the same thing with Michael Schumacher. I hate his dominance with Ferrari. I felt he sort of ruined the sport for a few years. Looking back... I see how incredibly biased that was.
RogerF1
Posts: 501
Nice observation
mcbhargav
Posts: 1,332
There is no doubt that Hamilton is one of the greatest drivers of all time. But, is he really "the most complete"? We can't compare racers of different generations, driving radically different cars in different track conditions, governed by different rules. ( Apart from Alonso, the bridge burner ) It takes a good driver and a good car ( and some luck, ask Mr.Button) to achieve the best results.
Manto02
Posts: 93
Problem is his personality. He just criticized the Singapore gp because it's too boring, why didn't he criticized it the last year when he won? Just a little example
mcbhargav
Posts: 1,332
Hamilton is as good as other great F1 drivers. But, Russel may not know anyone else ( including Alonso, Vettel in their heydays ) to compare him to. Perhaps he should have used the phrase "my limited experience". Sweeping statements are for immature, which he is.
essaouira311
Posts: 158
F1 today is a carousel for little boys.
Real racing and real drivers are back in the 60s, 70s and 80s...