"George Russell was a great benchmark for me": Nicholas Latifi

Nicholas Latifi feels he'll miss having a reference like George Russell in the same team next year. Photo: Mark Thompson/Getty Images

Williams driver Nicholas Latifi will miss having George Russell as his teammate in 2022. The Brit will be moving on from the team he made his F1 debut with and heading to greener pastures at the front of the grid with Mercedes next year.

Latifi will welcome Alex Albon as his new teammate in 2022. Commenting on his relationship with Russell and what he would miss about him, Motorsport.com reported Latifi say saying:

"I think George Russell has been a great reference to have. I mean he's someone that you know who, nine times out of 10, or maybe even nine and a half times out of 10, is always going to get very close to the maximum out of the car in a lot of the sessions, and in qualifying in particular."

"So that's not to say that I don't think my new teammate won't be capable of doing the same, but I think that reference has been quite strong, so it's been something quite beneficial for me to learn from, especially as I'm early in my career, just as he is. But it's nice to have that reference, and it's good when you're pushing him and going quicker than him. But likewise when it's the other way around, then you're just learning and speeding up that learning curve."

Expand Tweet

Few drivers are fortunate enough to receive such high compliments from their teammates but that's few can deny Russell's caliber at this stage.

How does George Russell compare to Hamilton at Mercedes?

Initially, there were a few question marks raised by the press and fans about what Russell might be able to achieve in the same team as Lewis Hamilton. He's put those concerns to rest with an all-round ability to perform at a very high level.

Be it extracting the best out of the car in qualifying, or managing a race with a comparatively slower car, George Russell has exhibited the qualities that should hold him in good stead once he's at Mercedes.

Going up against seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton in equal machinery is a daunting task but Russell looks set to hold his own against the Formula 1 legend.