Russell: 'It's a lose-lose situation for Verstappen to be my teammate'

George Russell believes that if Max Verstappen were to lose to him as his teammate, it would be considered a “big loss” for the Dutchman.

Verstappen and Russell haven't always seen eye to eye, but as far as the Mercedes driver is concerned, that wouldn’t stand in the way of being teammates with the Dutchman.

He told The Telegraph: "We’re fine. We just say hello to each other. We don’t really speak. But we don’t ignore each other. I don’t lose sleep over it. And for sure he doesn’t lose sleep over it. So it doesn’t bother me one single bit."

Russell doesn't need to be friends with Verstappen

ccording to the Briton, teammates don’t need to be friends to be successful, as he cited examples from famous rivalries in the past.

"Life is short. We’re all adults. We all learn from these experiences.

"Senna and Prost weren’t good friends and they still finished one-two. Lewis and Nico, one-two. Obviously Lewis and Fernando is a notable exception. But Lewis should have won that year [2007]."

Russell and Verstappen shaking hands in Singapore - Photo: Red Bull Content Pool

Russell would "relish" going up against the four-time world champion but believes Verstappen would have more to lose from such a partnership.

"I don’t see why he wouldn’t [want it]. I mean, it’s obviously more of a lose-lose situation for him. The same as when I was team-mates with Lewis [Hamilton]. If he beat me, he was expected to. But if he lost to me, yeah, it’s seen as a big loss. Or the same with me and Kimi [Antonelli] now. But I mean, we’re getting well ahead of ourselves here..."

In the same interview, Russell spoke about his contract situation. THe mentioned a clause which, based on his performances, will determine whether he continues with Mercedes into 2027.

The Briton isn’t worried about his situation and is convinced that if Verstappen joins Mercedes after next year, he won’t be the one to make way.

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