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George Russell claims that both he and Lewis Hamilton agreed with Mercedes regarding the development of the W14.
Hamilton recently lashed out at his team, claiming the Brackley-based squad did not listen to him before choosing a development path.
The team isn't struggling with porpoising as it did last year. This time around, their challenger purely lacks the downforce and rear grip required to challenge the Red Bulls and Ferraris, putting them on the back foot.
However, seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton reckons the team has got its concept entirely wrong. The Briton's main quibble with Mercedes is that they never consulted him regarding car development for the 2023 season. George Russell, however, claimed that both drivers were in agreement ahead of the new season.
Speaking after the 2023 Saudi Arabian GP, as reported by Crash.net, George Russell said:
“We were aware of the concept, Lewis and I. We did believe that this was the right direction. But we, as a team, have clearly missed something that happened over the winter and we’re working hard to rectify that now.”
The team reportedly has plans to change its aerodynamic philosophy entirely later this year. It remains to be seen if they will be successful.
Prominent F1 journalist feels Mercedes should favor Lewis Hamilton over George Russell
A recently surfaced video features prominent F1 journalist Peter Windsor suggesting that Mercedes should terminate George Russell's contract in order to favor Lewis Hamilton.
Both drivers have faced setbacks in achieving their desired level of success since becoming teammates at the beginning of the 2022 season due to a lack of a competitive car. Despite Russell's ambitions of regularly contending for victories, the actual situation has fallen short of his expectations.
The pair collaborated effectively last year to optimize their points and Russell emerged victorious over Lewis Hamilton by 35 points in the intra-team competition at the conclusion of the season. Hamilton currently holds a two-point lead over Russell in the 2023 drivers' standings.
Peter Windsor told the Cameron F1 YouTube channel that Mercedes would benefit by ordering George Russell to know his place within the team. He said:
"The problem is George, of course – it's not anything more or less than that. And you've got to remember Lewis wanted to keep Valtteri. So something big happened there in Lewis' mind... They didn't listen to him and they signed George."
"If I was now drafted in as team principal at Mercedes, I would say, 'George, here's the contract, it's in two pieces now mate. If you want to keep driving no problem, sign on the dotted line here and you will never finish in front of Lewis Hamilton. Sorry.'"
It will be interesting to see how the battle between the two drivers develops over the course of the 2023 F1 season.
