George Russell’s Contract Extension Speculations

Reports suggest that George Russell is on the verge of signing a two-year contract extension with Mercedes. The British racer took over the lead driver role at the Brackley outfit in 2025, following Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari. After partnering with Italian rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Russell has handled the increased responsibility admirably, currently sitting fourth in the drivers’ standings with 63 points, 14 points behind championship leader Lando Norris.

Russell’s Take on Contract Rumors

Addressing these contract extension rumors to Sky Sports F1 ahead of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Russell stated: “Rumors aren’t always truthful, are they? But you know, as I just said before, there’s always so much excitement around contracts. If you don’t perform, even if you’ve got a contract, you get dropped. And if you do perform, your future takes care of itself.” He continued, “So from my side, I’m just excited with my racing, pleased with how I’m performing, enjoying this season with the team. The performances are the strongest currency, so that’s what I’m focused on, and everything sorts itself out.”

When asked for clarification on the truth of these rumors, Russell added with a smile: “A few of them are reasonably close, I guess. But, at the end of the day, we have never discussed a contract prior to May or June in a season. I’d say the more abnormal point is how many drivers have these ‘long-term’ deals.” He further explained, “Everyone’s got exit clauses, they’ve all got performance clauses. If a driver is on a three-year contract, it doesn’t really mean anything if they’ve got an exit clause, or if the team has an exit clause if the driver doesn’t perform. So, as I said, it doesn’t really mean a lot. If you’ve got a contract with a team and the team wants you gone, the team finds a way to get you gone.

Toto Wolff’s Comments on Mercedes’ Driver Lineup

Mercedes team chief Toto Wolff has hinted at the future driver lineup of the team, confirming to Motorsport.com: “I mean, it is almost an open secret that we have every intention to keep our drivers for the long term. We are not disclosing every discussion that we have with the drivers and that is why this is going in the direction that it should go.