Right from the earliest days of his career on the kart track, George Russell has lived and breathed motorsport. And he showed impressive form from the outset in his early years of karting, proving he was one to watch out for.
George won various Championships, both national and international, during his karting career, including the British Open Championship (2009, Comer Cadet), Super 1 National Championship (2010, Rotax Mini Max) and the CIK-FIA European Championship (2012, KF3) – to name just a few.
He embarked on his first season of single-seater racing in 2014, making his debut in the Formula Renault 2.0 Alps series, where he eventually finished fourth in the standings. He would also compete in the BRDC Formula 4 Championship, storming to the title with five race victories.
In the same year, he won the prestigious McLaren Autosport Award for his achievements. And after just one year in Formula 4, he switched to the FIA Formula 3 European Championship for the next two seasons.
As a member of the HitechGP squad, driving a car powered by the Mercedes-AMG Formula 3 engine, George finished sixth in 2015 with one win and two further podium finishes, before improving to third in the standings in 2016, having scored two victories and made ten podium appearances along the way.
At the start of 2017, George was announced as a member of the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team’s junior programme, while also moving to the GP3 Series with frontrunners ART Grand Prix. He went on to take the championship, with four race wins and three further podium finishes – while also completing F1 testing with Mercedes and driving in two FP1 sessions for Force India.
The momentum continued for George in 2018, where he replicated his GP3 success by becoming FIA Formula 2 Champion at his first attempt. Across his rookie campaign, the Brit scored seven wins and four further podiums, finishing at the top of the standings, while also gaining vital F1 testing experience with Mercedes and Force India during the year, too.
In October 2018, it was formally announced that George would move up to Formula One with the Williams team for 2019. Despite a tricky debut season in the sport, mostly fighting at the back of the field, George dominated the inter-team battle at Williams and put in some impressive performances across the year, although none yielded points.
He remained with Williams for 2020, which again proved challenging for Williams, while also being a tricky season for the sport due to the COVID-19 pandemic. With Williams making a good step forward in car performance, George was able to battle more with the midfield pack and made numerous Q2 appearances with the team.
George also spent several races fighting inside the top 10, but he was unable to hold onto the position and score any points with Williams. However, George stood in for Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes for the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix and qualified P2 on the grid. He led the field out of Turn 1 and controlled the field with a mature drive, only for a pit stop issue and puncture putting him out of race-winning contention. He finished in ninth place and scored fastest lap, to earn his first F1 points.
Retained by Williams for a third consecutive season and in a more competitive car, George made it to Q2 15 times and Q3 four times. He put in several starring drives, including an eighth-place finish at the Hungarian Grand Prix, to score his first points for Williams.
In the rain-affected Belgian GP, he put in a stunning lap to secure second on the grid, his first front-row start with Williams. The race was delayed by wet weather, with only two laps being completed behind the Safety Car before it was called off. This meant George maintained his position and was classified P2, scoring his first F1 podium. He added points-scoring finishes to his stats sheet in Italy and Russia to end the season 15th in the Drivers’ Championship.
In September 2021, George was confirmed as a driver for the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team in 2022, alongside Lewis Hamilton.
| Nationality: | British |
| Date of Birth: | 15 February 1998 |
| Place of Birth: | Kings Lynn, UK |
| Lives: | London |
| Height: | 1.86m |
| Debut: | Australia, 17 March 2019 |
| Best World Championship: | P15 – 2021 |
| Wins: | 0 |
| Podiums: | 1 |
| Pole Positions: | 0 |
| Front Row Starts: | 2 |
| Fastest Laps: | 1 |
| Starts: | 60 |
| Points: | 19 |
| 2022 | Formula One: Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team – Car No.63 |
| 2021 | Formula One: Williams Racing – P15 |
| 2020 | Formula One: Williams Racing - P18 |
| 2019 | Formula One: ROKiT Williams Racing - P20 |
| 2018 | FIA Formula 2 - Champion |
| 2017 | GP3 Series – Champion |
| 2016 | FIA European Formula 3 Championship – P3 |
| Macau Grand Prix – P5 | |
| 2015 | FIA European Formula 3 Championship – P6 |
| Masters of Formula 3 – P2 | |
| 2014 | BRDC Formula 4 Championship – Champion |
| Formula Renault 2.0 Alps – P4 | |
| 2012 | Super 1 National Championship (KF3) – P2 |
| 2012 | CIK-FIA European Championship (KF3) – Champion |
| 2012 | South Garda Winter Cup (KF3) – Champion |
| 2010 | Formula Kart Stars (Mini Max) – Champion |
| 2010 | Kartmasters British Grand Prix (Rotax Mini Max) – Champion |
| 2010 | Super 1 National Championship (Rotax Mini Max) – Champion |
| 2009 | British Open Championship (Comer Cadet) – Champion |
| 2009 | Formula Kart Stars MSA (Cadet) – Champion |
| 2009 | MSA Kartmasters Grand Prix (Comer Cadet) – Champion |
| 2008 | Kartmasters British Grand Prix (WTP Cadet) – Champion |
