George Russell has indicated he has conflicting feelings about the possibility of Max Verstappen retiring from Formula 1, backing the sport to easily survive without the Dutchman, but admitted he and the other 20 drivers would miss racing against him.
The Dutchman has conveyed a strong sense of unhappiness since the start of the season, issuing multiple public criticisms of the sport’s new technical regulations era.
Coupled with that is Red Bull’s current on and off-track crises, with performances and results so far modest, as well as a continuing trend of high-profile personnel leaving.
The latest key figure to announce his impending exit is Verstappen’s race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase, who will join rivals McLaren “no later than 2028”.
Russell has been one driver who has tackled some hefty and public battles with Verstappen, and the title favourite is one driver who has been less negative in his assessment of the new rules and cars.
But speaking to select media, including Motorsport Week, the Mercedes driver explained that F1 is “bigger” than any individual, but explained why the four-time World Champion would be a big loss to the sport.
“Formula 1 is bigger than any driver. You wouldn’t want to lose Max because we all enjoy racing against Max,” he said, before suggesting that Verstappen is displaying a sense of hypocrisy, due to his less vocal attitude to the previous ruleset.
“It’s just part and parcel of Formula 1. I didn’t enjoy driving the ’22 car when it was porpoising up and down, killing everybody’s backs,” he explained. “The car was big, it was heavy, the high-speed corners, it wasn’t very pleasant to drive around, but he didn’t have the same complaint because he was winning.
“Now, the complaints that he has currently are different to the complaints of Mercedes, Ferrari and McLaren because we’re at the front end of the grid. This is only natural and you do understand and recognise the frustration.”
George Russell reveals envy of Max Verstappen’s Nordsleife exploits
Russell continued that Verstappen, who has often stated his lack of interest in breaking records and enjoyment of other pursuits could see him quit the sport earlier than many, can indeed actively accomplish other goals.
“But he’s achieved what most drivers dream of, which is winning a championship. He’s got four of them,” he said. “At the end of the day, I guess you get to a point in life…there’s not really much more for him to achieve in Formula 1. He’s ticked all the boxes, maybe he can go after the records.
“I guess you get to a point in life where there’s not much more for him to achieve in F1. He’s ticked all the boxes.
“Maybe he can go after the records but knowing him as I do and knowing drivers who have won or achieved similar things, at one point you want to do what puts a smile on your face.
“I can totally understand why driving the Nordschleife puts a smile on his face. I’ve driven hundreds of laps around the Nordschleife on the simulator and I would love to have that chance to go and race around the Nordschleife.
“But my goal now is to become a Formula 1 World Champion. If I have four of them under my belt, I’d probably be doing the same. He’s in a very different stage of his career.
“I think you’d understand if he stayed and you’d understand if he went.”
With F1 returning in Miami in two weeks, there will be great interest in whether any significant changes to the current rules have been made, and whether they, along with any potential rot-stopping from Red Bull, could see Verstappen placated.
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