George Russell Bio
George William Russell (born 15 February 1998) is a British racing driver who competes in Formula One for Mercedes. He has won five Formula One Grands Prix across seven seasons and drives with car number 63. A member of the Mercedes Junior Team since 2017, Russell combines one-lap qualifying speed with consistent race-day execution.
Born and raised in King’s Lynn, Norfolk, England, Russell began competitive karting at age seven and progressed through the junior single-seater ladder with French team ART Grand Prix. He won back-to-back titles in the 2017 GP3 Series and the 2018 FIA Formula 2 Championship, becoming one of only a handful of rookies to claim both crowns.
Early Life and Background
George Russell was born in King’s Lynn, Norfolk, to father Steve and mother Alison. He is the youngest of three siblings, with sister Cara and older brother Benjy, a competitive karter who won the 2007 Super 1 National Kart Championship in the Rotax Max category. Russell grew up in Tydd St Giles, Wisbech, and Castle Rising. His father ran a business selling seeds and pulses, which he sold in 2012 to help fund his son’s junior racing career.
Russell took up karting at age seven, following his brother Benjy into the sport. He adopted car number 63 from the kart his brother rented at the time, a number he has carried throughout his career. As a young driver, he attended Wisbech Grammar School before switching to homeschooling to devote more time to racing. At 18, he relocated to Milton Keynes to be closer to his junior team.
Path to NASCAR
Russell’s motorsport career is rooted in European open-wheel racing rather than the NASCAR ladder system. He built his resume through karting championships, the BRDC Formula 4 series, the GP3 Series, and the FIA Formula 2 Championship, all of which prepared him for a Formula One seat. His progression through these categories eventually led to a Mercedes Formula One drive, the pinnacle of his chosen discipline.
George Russell Career
Early Career (2014–2018)
Russell made his single-seater debut in 2014, racing simultaneously in BRDC Formula 4 with Lanan Racing and Formula Renault 2.0 Alps with Koiranen GP. He won the BRDC F4 title that year, recovering from a mid-season bout of chickenpox and a brief points deficit to clinch the championship at the final race at Snetterton. For his efforts, he received the 2014 Autosport BRDC Award and a GP3 test at Yas Marina.
In 2017, Russell joined ART Grand Prix for the GP3 Series, winning the championship as a rookie with four victories and finishing 79 points clear of second-placed Jack Aitken. Promoted to ART’s FIA Formula 2 team in 2018, he locked up the title in his rookie season, finishing 68 points ahead of Lando Norris. He became the fifth driver to win the GP2/Formula 2 championship as a rookie, joining names such as Lewis Hamilton, Nico Hülkenberg, and Charles Leclerc.
Williams Era (2019–2021)
Russell made his Formula One debut with Williams in 2019, partnering Robert Kubica. The Williams car was well off the pace, and Russell went his entire rookie season without scoring a point, outqualifying Kubica at all 21 races and finishing 20th in the Drivers’ Championship. His best result of the year was 11th at the rain-affected German Grand Prix, where he narrowly missed a point.
His time at Williams turned a corner in 2020 when he was unexpectedly drafted into the Mercedes senior team for the Sakhir Grand Prix after Lewis Hamilton tested positive for COVID-19. Russell nearly won that race, leading the majority of laps before a pit-stop mix-up cost him positions. Back at Williams in 2021, he scored his first points for the team at the Hungarian Grand Prix and claimed his maiden Formula One podium at the curtailed Belgian Grand Prix, finished behind the safety car after just two laps of running.
Mercedes Era (2022–Present)
Russell joined Mercedes in 2022 to replace Valtteri Bottas, partnering seven-time World Drivers’ Champion Lewis Hamilton. His first season delivered several career firsts, including a maiden pole position at the Hungarian Grand Prix and a maiden victory at the São Paulo Grand Prix. He finished fourth in the World Drivers’ Championship, outscoring Hamilton by 35 points.
After a winless 2023 season for Mercedes, Russell bounced back in 2024 with victories at the Austrian and Las Vegas Grands Prix. He also became the first driver in 30 years to be disqualified from a race win after his Spa-Francorchamps result was thrown out for a technical infringement. In 2025, he added wins at the Canadian and Singapore Grands Prix, bringing his total to five Grand Prix victories. Russell is contracted to remain with Mercedes through at least the end of the 2026 season.
Driving Style and Strengths
Russell is widely regarded as one of the cleanest racers on the Formula One grid, with consistent pace across a variety of car configurations. He is particularly noted for qualifying speed, earning the nickname “Mr. Saturday” during his Williams years, and he became the only teammate in Lewis Hamilton’s career to outqualify the seven-time champion head-to-head across their time together. His strengths include tyre management, instinctive car control, and the ability to extract performance from cars that are unstable on corner entry.
Notable Races and Milestones
Signature results include his near-victory at the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix, his breakthrough podium at the 2021 Belgian Grand Prix, his first Grand Prix win at the 2022 São Paulo Grand Prix, and a dominant Las Vegas Grand Prix victory in 2024 where he led 49 of 50 laps. He has also achieved maiden pole positions in Hungary and Montreal, and earned the Lorenzo Bandini Trophy in 2024, an award recognizing sportsmanship in motorsport.
George Russell Career Wins
Russell has accumulated five Formula One Grand Prix victories, alongside multiple poles, podiums, and fastest laps. He also won the BRDC Formula 4, GP3 Series, and FIA Formula 2 championships during his junior career, all of which established him as one of the most complete graduates of the European single-seater ladder.
Formula One Highlights
Russell’s five confirmed Formula One race wins are the 2022 São Paulo Grand Prix, the 2024 Austrian Grand Prix, the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix, the 2025 Canadian Grand Prix, and the 2025 Singapore Grand Prix. His maiden victory came at Interlagos in 2022, a sprint and Grand Prix double, and his most recent win came under the lights in Singapore. He has also recorded seven pole positions and 11 fastest laps in the series.
Other Wins and Performances
In junior formulae, Russell won the 2014 BRDC Formula 4 Championship, the 2017 GP3 Series, and the 2018 FIA Formula 2 Championship, the last two with ART Grand Prix. Earlier in his career, he earned back-to-back Karting European Championship titles in 2011 and 2012, becoming the first driver in history to successfully defend the Junior European Championship crown.
George Russell Family
Family Background and Racing Lineage
Russell comes from a close-knit family with deep roots in British grassroots racing. His father, Steve Russell, ran a seed and pulse business, selling it in 2012 to fund George’s junior career, an investment that ultimately cost the family roughly £1.5 million. His older brother, Benjy, was a successful karter whose own career path inspired George to begin racing at age seven.
Personal Life
Russell has been in a relationship with Carmen Montero Mundt, a former business student at the University of Westminster, since 2020. The couple met through mutual friends over dinner in London and live together in Monaco, where Russell relocated in 2022. Within Formula One, he is particularly close friends with Alex Albon, Lando Norris, and Charles Leclerc, having raced alongside Albon and Leclerc during his karting days.
2025 Season Performance
The 2025 Formula One season has seen Russell take on a leadership role at Mercedes following Lewis Hamilton’s departure to Ferrari. With new teammate Kimi Antonelli, a fellow Mercedes Junior Team graduate, Russell has been positioned as the team’s senior driver. Early results have justified that promotion, with Russell adding Grand Prix victories in Canada and Singapore to bring his career total to five wins.
Russell’s campaign has been described by the British press as largely error-free at the three-quarter mark of the season. He has consistently qualified near the front of the grid and has shown strong tyre management in races, including a notable defensive drive at the Bahrain Grand Prix that drew praise from paddock observers. His partnership with the Mercedes engineering group continues to mature as the team develops its ground-effect car concept.
Looking ahead, Russell is contracted with Mercedes through the end of the 2026 season, when a new set of technical regulations is set to reshape the competitive order. With a stable team environment, a proven race-winning car, and growing experience as a team leader, Russell enters the final stretch of 2025 with momentum and a clear long-term target of challenging for the World Drivers’ Championship.