How Russell staked his claim for Hamilton's crown

When Lewis Hamilton eventually decides to hang up his helmet, Mercedes has a problem: how to replace the greatest driver of a generation? George Russell is one who might inherit that mantle - but he'll still have to fight for it, says Luke Smith.

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Slumped disconsolately against a grassy bank at Imola while marshals shepherded his damaged Williams off the track, George Russell could not believe what he had just done. Having accumulated a near-spotless record through his Formula 1 career to date, he'd just committed one of the biggest don'ts in racing: shunting behind the Safety Car.

Running 10th and eyeing the prospect of scoring his first F1 point, Russell pushed too hard while trying to get warmth into his tyres before the restart, causing his Williams FW43 to spear left into the wall at the entry to Acque Minerali.

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Author Luke Smith

Luke Smith is Autosport’s Formula 1 reporter. Luke has been working in F1 as a journalist since 2013, initially alongside a History degree at University College London. Luke served as the lead F1 writer at American broadcaster NBC Sports from 2013-17 before spending two years as the F1 Editor for Crash.net. Luke joined Autosport for the 2020 season.

Luke is also a contributor to The New York Times for its F1 special reports, and has previously worked with Al Jazeera and CNBC, as well as hosting FIA press conferences. Outside of F1, Luke is a fan of sports and music, with an ever-growing vinyl collection, and has being bitten by the running bug in recent years. He also runs a surprisingly popular blog reviewing the often-terrible media centre coffee from his F1 travels.