“Ultimately, as a driver, my goal is to become Formula One world champion” view
#23: George Russell, Williams F1 driver
The moment I found out I’d got my F1 seat was on the Saturday evening of the Russian Grand Prix – I was there racing in Formula Two. I got a message from my manager saying Claire [Williams] was after a meeting with me. I had high hopes, but no idea whether it was nothing or the moment she’d tell me. When she broke the news, it was surreal. The Esteban Ocon situation this year, where there were two deals on the table and both fell through, meant that while I had trust in Claire’s word, I didn’t want to celebrate until I had the contract on the table ready to sign.
Having seen Charles Leclerc win Formula Two in his rookie season and go on to have an amazing year in F1, I had good confidence my results would be recognised. I knew as long as I was doing the job on track, the opportunity would come.
It all happened very quickly. After Claire told me, I was in Japan the following week, then back in the UK with media engagements and simulator work. Once it went public, I went home that weekend and spent time with my family – parents, brother, sister, their partners, my girlfriend. We opened a bottle of champagne… or two, or three, and cherished the moment. Those are the people that have supported me my whole career – they’ve sacrificed so much.
The biggest change in stepping gp up to F1 is the number of commitments: days at the factory, ory, the media schedule, the sponsor days, going g to the races, the testing, the debriefing... it’s absolutely non-stop. It’s something you don’t recognise from the outside; you think it’s all sunshine and glory in amazing places. From junior formulas there’s just no comparison at all, but I recognise that this is what the sport’s all about and you have to do these things to reach the top. It’s a shock to the system initially, but I’m loving it for now.
There’s no extra intimidation from being so young. Over the past five years, a younger generation has come through with Verstappen, Ocon, Leclerc, Norris, so it’s the norm now. Hopefully we can be the guys that sustain this amazing sport for years to come.
My first memories of F1 are from the Schumacher era. Naturally I was a big Schumacher fan to start with, but I wouldn’t say he’s my outright idol. I have two drivers I admire most. First, Lewis Hamilton – every time he goes on track, the team can count on him to do a job. Working with Mercedes over the last two years, I’ve admired and recognised how much of an influence he has within the team. The other would be Montoya. I’ve always enjoyed how aggressive he is with his overtakes and general attitude on the track.
Ultimately, as a driver, my goal is to become F1 world champion. If you’re looking for a timeframe, I haven’t set one. This year’s target has to be to get the most out of the car every time I’m on track, whether that’s a podium or 15th position. I also want to build a relationship with everyone in the factory y – it’s so important to have that bond. This sport is so complex, the cars are so complex, that if everybody’s not reading from the same page, it’s impossible to bring it all together.