Russell ready for F1 challenge in 2019

The last reigning F2 Champion didn’t do too badly in F1 in his first season did he? Charles Leclerc impressed us all and earned himself a move to Ferrari, and George Russell is ready to show the world that he is just as good in 2019.

Russell signed for Williams for next season, 2018’s bottom team and becomes the third British driver on the grid, with 5 time champion Lewis Hamilton and fellow rookie Lando Norris.

And the 20-year old feels that he can take his chance in the spotlight and prove his worth in the sport.

He said: “Obviously I'm a rookie, I'm not going to go out there and do anything stupid. But I feel like this is my time and I'm ready to do the business. It's a huge step up, not only in the speed aspect, from Formula 2 to Formula 1. There's so much extra coming with it. You're in the eyes of millions of viewers.

"I've gone from working with 30 team members in Formula 2 to 750 with Williams. There's much more pressure on the driver's shoulders than just driving the car."

Russell is a Mercedes youngster and is on their young driver programme, along with Esteban Ocon, who finds himself without a drive in 2019.

He added: “The past couple of years, since joining the Mercedes programme, have been a step-by-step process. It almost felt like a natural step to get this opportunity. This is everything I've dreamed of."