RUSSELL: I GOT NEWS IN BATHROOM George’s ‘ awkward’ call from boss Wolff

GEORGE Russell became aware of his dream move to Mercedes only in a 2am phone call with team boss Toto Wolff from his bathroom. Russell, 22, will deputise for seven- time world champion Lewis Hamilton, who has tested positive for Covid19, at Sunday’s Sakhir Grand Prix in Bahrain. Remarkably, the British youngster will be among the favourites to win after swapping his Williams, for whom he has driven for two years, for the fastest car on the grid. Now the King’s Lynn- born ace, left, in his second season in F1, can rest easy after Mercedes struck a deal for the penultimate race of the season. Russell said: “I don’t think it has sunk in yet because it has all happened so quickly,. “It has been an intense 48 hours and I was very anxious on Tuesday waiting to find out if we could strike a deal with Williams.

“I got a phone call from Toto at 2am on Tuesday morning. I was in the bathroom, which was slightly awkward. He said, ‘ George, are you in the bathroom?’ And I said, ‘ Yes, sorry, I am’.

“He replied by saying, ‘ Unfortunately Lewis has got Covid. He is healthy, and he feels fine, but we want you to drive’.

“It was a sleepless night but we made it happen the following day.

“I had 64 phone calls on Tuesday, so I am glad we got there in the end.”

Russell has failed to score a point this year in his uncompetitive Williams, leading to speculation regarding his future.

But now he has his shot in a championshipwinning Mercedes.

He said: “Fairy- tale is the wrong word. It is in odd circumstances but this year has just been mental on all accounts.

“This is just another twist. It still seems surreal and I will look back on 2020 and think ‘ what an unbelievable year’.”