George Russell has branded self-critical comments from Lewis Hamilton about his performances during this year’s Formula 1 season as “nonsense”.
The seven-time World Champion has endured a torrid debut campaign with Ferrari as he remains without a single podium over the opening 14 races.
A watershed moment of his difficulties came at the last round in Hungary, when, after failing to reach Q3, Hamilton dubbed himself “useless”.
He additionally suggested Ferrari “change driver”, given that in the same qualifying session, Charles Leclerc managed to plant his sister Ferrari on pole position.
Russell is a driver who knows Hamilton better than a great deal, given their three seasons as team-mates at Mercedes.
And speaking ahead of this weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix, Russell revealed the myriad of emotions that a driver can feel in the midst of a good or bad day at the office.
“Of course he’s talking nonsense when he says something like that because he’s the greatest driver of all time,” the Mercedes driver told media including Motorsport Week.
“I think in a situation like that, when you go from the race track and you’re in front of the media within 10 minutes, you have all of these emotions.
“When you have a bad day, that’s how you feel. When you have a good day, everything changes.
“He’s still an exceptional driver. He obviously won the sprint straight away at the start of the year in China. He’s clearly still got it.”
Russell shows sympathy towards Hamilton
Hamilton’s misery in 2025 has been down to Ferrari’s underperforming SF-25, a car which has been forced to run on top-end ride heights due to its much-maligned floor.
It has left both Leclerc and Hamilton foundering at times, severely unable to extract prolonged performance out of it, leaving them both frustrated.
Russell highlighted the pressures of being in F1, particularly when things aren’t going your way.
“Formula 1 is not an easy sport, and especially if the team is not performing at the highest level, that compounds the issue,” he explained.
“And of course, Charles is an amazing driver too. I think right now, 14 races down, probably every driver bar two [title rivals Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris] is looking forward to 2026 and for a fresh opportunity to fight for a championship. And for someone like Lewis, that’s what he lives for. Not just get in at once.”
READ MORE – Lewis Hamilton admits Ferrari ‘pressure’ has made F1 2025 ‘not the most enjoyable’
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