Lewis Hamilton and George Russell's partnership makes Mercedes lineup the 'best' on the grid, according to Toto Wolff 

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has claimed that Lewis Hamilton and George Russell together form the best driver lineup on the grid. The duo were fairly consistent in 2022, with the former Williams man showcasing his talent throughout the year.

Hamilton has established himself as one of the best drivers in the sport in his 16-year career so far, having won seven world titles. However, the Briton failed to impress in the first half of the 2022 season as his team's challenger was riddled with porpoising.

George Russell, on the other hand, proved his worth in the Brackley-based squad with multiple top-five finishes over the season. Toto Wolff recently claimed that Russell is self-critical and makes the best pairing on the grid with Lewis Hamilton.

Toto Wolff said of the two drivers to GPFans:

"George is always very self-critical, which is one of the assets that make him a future world champion. He has been thrown now into the Mercedes works team, we keep developing the car, and if you ask me now, the final results look different."

"Like at the beginning of the year, you could say George was doing very well, and then in the last third of the year, it was Lewis. But in terms of optimum performance, we have the combination of the two best drivers, the strongest line-up."

George Russell claimed he can't beat Lewis Hamilton in every single session

George Russell outperformed Lewis Hamilton in 2022 but is still realistic about his chances against the F1 legend in the future.

Speaking to The Race about his battle with his teammate, George Russell acknowledged that it would be impossible for him to beat Lewis Hamilton all the time. He said:

"I'm not going to beat him every single session, every qualifying, every race. That's just absolutely not going to happen. But having a year like we've had this year, is almost equivalent to maybe what the 95/5 split was for me previously."

Russell further added:

"I never doubted myself. I always believed in myself. But if you go with the mindset 'I'm going to beat Lewis Hamilton 95 per cent of the time', you're going to come away disappointed."

George Russell also believes approaching every weekend, thinking he could beat Hamilton, would lead to constant disappointments. However, the 24-year-old reckons that his record of beating his teammate by a small margin was something he could continue to achieve.

Beating Lewis Hamilton in equal machinery is a feat that only a few have managed to do in the past, putting Russell in good company. However, with Mercedes reportedly ready to fight at the top of the grid in 2023, it remains to be seen whether the former Williams man can hold his ground.