Leclerc has "some hope" of Russell winning on his Mercedes F1 race debut
Charles Leclerc says he has "some hope" of George Russell being able to win for the Mercedes Formula 1 team in Bahrain this weekend
Russell has been drafted in by Mercedes as replacement for Lewis Hamilton, who has been sidelined after testing positive for coronavirus earlier this week.
And although Russell faces a huge challenge getting up to speed with his new surroundings, his long-time friend and former karting team-mate Leclerc has high hopes for him.
"For me a podium at least, but I have some hope of a win," said the Ferrari driver about Russell's prospects. "I mean it's very optimistic, but I know he's very good. I know that he's very good and I could bet on a win."
PLUS: The risk and reward of Russell's Mercedes opportunity
Leclerc feels that even if Russell gets just one outing in the Mercedes, it will be enough for him to show what he is capable of.
"It is an amazing opportunity," added Leclerc. "I've known him for a lot of years, we were team-mates with Alex [Albon], and George back in 2011, in karting. And yeah now he finally has the opportunity to race for a top team.
"I don't know for how long it be, whether it will be for one weekend or two, but anyway, I think he will show how much of a good driver he is this weekend.
"Of course he has shown it before, but now having the opportunity to be fighting further up, with probably the best car out there, is a great opportunity for him and I hope he will do well."
Leclerc is not the only one tipping Russell to do good things this weekend, with McLaren's Lando Norris also thinking his fellow Brit can triumph.
"I think he can achieve a pole, I think he can achieve a win," he said.
"But I think if there's any weekend maybe Mercedes have a smaller advantage than any other weekend, it's probably here.
"So he's taken a step up into the team at probably one of the toughest weekends of the year in terms of their advantage that they probably have over the rest of the field. So it's not going to be easy for him.
"But I know how good a driver he is. And I'm sure everyone else does too. I'm sure of course Mercedes do as well. So I'm expecting big things.
"Of course I'm maybe slightly jealous if he gets an extremely good result or a win. But I'll just be happy for him, and I look forward to hopefully being able to fight him again."
Be part of the Autosport community
Join the conversationShare Or Save This Story
F1 teams and Pirelli had no warning of “painted” Shanghai track surface
FIA still chasing answers over bizarre Shanghai F1 grass fires
Why F1 2026 worst case fears could be key to new rules success
Sainz will have to "survive with what we have" in F1 China sprint
Leclerc: Sainz simply doing a better job in recent F1 races
What's been going wrong for Leclerc in F1's tiny margins qualifying game
Hamilton expects to lose positions if F1 China sprint is dry
2024 F1 Chinese GP sprint qualifying results: Norris takes pole
The F1 breakthroughs Mercedes made in Japan - and what's next
WEC Imola: Ferrari remains on top in FP2 as Fuoco beats Porsche
WRC Croatia: Neuville, Evans tied for the lead after eight stages
WIN! A VIP Race Weekend Experience in Monaco
Lauda's 1976 German GP helmet to be auctioned at F1 Miami GP
The short-term pain that hides a very real Williams improvement
How a Shanghai to Sheffield journey paved the way for China’s F1 hero
Why F1 2026 worst case fears could be key to new rules success
How the F1 driver market situation sits for each team with 2025 openings
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments