Lewis Hamilton has come to the defense of his Mercedes teammate, George Russell, amid rising criticism and conspiracy theories on social media regarding Russell’s qualifying performances in the 2024 Formula 1 season. With Russell leading Hamilton 8-1 in their qualifying head-to-head and also ahead in the championship standings by 14 points after nine rounds, speculation has surfaced suggesting favoritism towards Russell within the team.
In what marks Hamilton’s final season with Mercedes before his move to Ferrari in 2025, he emphasized the need for fans to provide support rather than negativity. During a press conference ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix, Hamilton expressed solidarity with Russell and Mercedes, highlighting their longstanding successful collaboration.
“I think if you look over the years, we’ve always been a strong team. We’ve always worked really hard together,” Hamilton stated. He acknowledged recent social media abuse directed at Russell and emphasized that Russell has consistently performed well for the team.
Hamilton further added, “George has done nothing but his best every single weekend and is delivering for the team, so he can’t be faulted at all.”
Sitting alongside Hamilton, Russell acknowledged the challenges of being in the public eye and the impact of social media. “I have a team that looks after my social media. I don’t look on Instagram or Twitter to be honest,” Russell commented. “The comments are not something I have seen. I have heard about it, and it is never nice to hear, but that is the world we live in at the moment.”
Reflecting on their recent performance at the Canadian Grand Prix, where Russell qualified on pole but finished third due to mistakes, both drivers discussed the ongoing development of the Mercedes W15 car and their prospects for the upcoming race in Spain.
Hamilton, a six-time winner at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, remained cautiously optimistic about their chances. “There are no certainties in this industry,” he remarked. “We have not been on a high-speed circuit yet so we’ll see how it goes. I’m optimistic.”
The Spanish Grand Prix at Barcelona represents a crucial test for Mercedes, with Russell and Hamilton aiming to capitalize on recent improvements and maintain their competitiveness.
Credit: Sky Sports
