Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has lauded George Russell following the departure of Lewis Hamilton. The 53-year-old praised the British driver as the new leader of the Brackley-based team during a recent interview.Russell, who joined the Mercedes outfit ahead of the 2022 season, was a teammate with Hamilton up until the end of the 2024 campaign. The 27-year-old has now taken over as the main driver of the team following Hamilton’s departure and is teaming up with rookie teammate Kimi Antonelli.While his contract situation has been in the spotlight, Wolff, who recently spoke with Italian outlet Gazzetta dello Sport, said how pleased he was with Russell’s leadership role at the team."Last year, it was already clear how mature he had become, but of course, he was always in the shadow of a champion like Hamilton. When Lewis left, he naturally took on a leadership role and delivered performances that even exceeded the car’s potential."Russell, through his three-year stint as teammate with Lewis Hamilton, finished ahead of the seven-time world champion in the Drivers’ standings on two occasions — 2022 and 2024. Russell also recorded more race victories with three as compared to two, which Hamilton achieved during their stint together.The King's Lynn native earlier recorded a race victory at the 2025 Canadian Grand Prix. Hamilton, who joined the Scuderia Ferrari outfit on his part, is still without a race win.Toto Wolff defends Lewis Hamilton after Hungary GP outingToto Wolff earlier defended Lewis Hamilton following his outing at the Hungarian Grand Prix. The Austrian motorsports executive stressed that the Ferrari driver cannot be written off despite his outing at the Budapest race.Wolff, who worked with Hamilton for 12 years at the Mercedes team, was also quick to throw his weight behind the seven-time champion. Speaking with Channel 4 Sport, he stated:"Never write Lewis Hamilton off. I don't know, I've always said that Lewis in a good weekend is still an absolute, absolute dominant guy. He's always been strong in the second half of the season also, so never write Lewis Hamilton off." View this post on Instagram Instagram PostLewis Hamilton will indeed be hoping to replicate his famous rebound during the second half of the season, especially considering the underwhelming start to the 2025 campaign. The British driver has endured a torrid start to his stint with the Ferrari team.Hamilton with Ferrari is yet to record a top-three finish through the first half of the season so far. The former McLaren driver came close to finishing on the podium during his home race at the British Grand Prix. The subsequent races following the Silverstone outing, however, have not gone as he would have envisaged. He suffered a double first-round qualifying elimination at the Belgian Grand Prix and another Q2 exit at the Hungarian event.