George Russell believes a rejuvenated Lewis Hamilton is a “huge threat” to Mercedes at the 2026 Formula 1 Austrian Grand Prix.
F1’s latest era has seemingly pulled Hamilton back into his groove.
The seven-time World Champion has been excelling under the 2026 regulations reset with the SF-26.
After back-to-back second-place finishes at Canada and Monaco, Hamilton finally took his maiden Ferrari victory at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, two weeks ago.
This has officially opened his bid for an unprecedented eighth drivers’ title with the Briton’s gap to championship leader Andrea Kimi Antonelli coming down to 41 points heading into the Austrian GP weekend.
Hamilton’s former team-mate George Russell praised the Briton on his exploits whilst also highlighting how he has been struggling to “get the most out of yourself” under the current rule-set.
“Yeah, I mean, at first, it’s great to see Lewis back doing what he does best,” he told media including Motorsport Week.
“I think that’s also just such an example of how challenging Formula 1 is, because the cars are so complex, the tyres are so complex, the power units are complex.
“Everything needs to click and if one thing isn’t clicking, you can’t get the most out of yourself.”
Lewis Hamilton a “huge threat” to Mercedes – George Russell
The first six rounds of 2026 fell exclusively to the Brackley-based team with Russell winning the season-opening Australian GP followed by a five-race win streak for Antonelli.
Barcelona, hence, was the first time that Mercedes’ iron grip on the championship was dismantled.
Heading into the race weekend at the Red Bull Ring, Russell is acutely aware that Ferrari and Hamilton could repeat its exploits from Spain – especially with the Maranello-based team bringing its first engine upgrade to Spielberg under the ADUO scheme.
“You know, people were writing him off last year or even the year we were teammates in ’24,” Russell added referencing Hamilton’s own discomfort with the erstwhile ground effects era.
“You know, “Is he too old? Is he this? Is he that?” And then he goes and he’s been smashing it for the last four or five races.
“It just shows that you don’t forget how to drive overnight. You need yourself, your team, the set-up, the understanding of the tyres, everything just to click. And when it clicks, you fly.
“As you said, it’s beautiful. So that’s where he is at the moment and for sure he is a big threat.
“Ferrari are a huge threat. Kimi is still very much the driver out front and is performing really incredibly and consistently. But yeah, Ferrari feel like they’re coming and Lewis is at the forefront of that.”
Hamilton is a two-time Grand Prix winner at the Red Bull Ring and will hope to extend this record by taking the chequered flag in P1, for the first time since 2020, this weekend.
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