WILL WILLIAMS’S REAL ROOKIE DEFEAT ITS FAUXROOKIE?
ROBERT KUBICA’S FORMULA 1 RETURN IS A STELLAR story, but it will only have a truly happy ending if he overcomes probably the worst possible team-mate scenario he could have asked for.
With question marks remaining over how good
Kubica will be on his F1 comeback, more than eight years after his last start, going up against a highly rated, dedicated youngster – who also happens to be the reigning Formula 2 champion – means that any deficiencies will be ruthlessly exposed.
George Russell is playing the team card. The British driver, a Mercedes protege signed for two years at Williams, says he is “really excited” to be team-mates with Kubica. While Kubica considers himself a rookie of sorts heading into 2019, Russell is a real rookie. With that comes less expectation and more career momentum, which means Russell’s effectively in a win-win situation. Beat Kubica and he cements his status as a quality talent who has adapted well to F1; fail to beat him and he probably gets the benefit of the doubt as someone who had to adjust to a new challenge. Russell, though, is not underestimating his new team-mate.
“There is no doubt about his natural talent,” says
2018 Mercedes reserve driver Russell. “He’s extremely motivated and has huge knowledge about the car on the technical side. It’s no secret Williams had a tough year in ’18. With his experience and my experience at Mercedes, we have a huge amount to bring.”
While Sergey Sirotkin, or someone with more recent F1 experience, would have been a better immediate benchmark for Russell, the 2014 Mclaren Autosport BRDC Award winner reckons it means little unless Williams makes progress after finishing last in ’18.
“I really wanted a team-mate like Robert to go up against and show what I am capable of,” says Russell. “But if I’m beating my team-mate but it’s for last position, there’s no joy or glory for anybody. Myself and Robert will be working really hard together, firstly to get the team to where they deserve to be.
Then we’ll see how the results are after that.”