F1 | Russell and his first contact with Paddy Lowe: “I called him, I wanted Williams”

On the day of the announcement of his move to Williams for 2019, George Russell revealed ad Motorsport some details regarding the negotiation that led him to sign with the Grove team. “My first contact with them was about two weeks before the Hockenheim race (held on 22 July, ed.)”– said the 20-year-old Englishman from the Mercedes school. “I called Paddy on the phone (Lowe, the technical director, ed.) and told him: 'Next season I want to be in Formula 1 in a Williams, we can have a meeting with you and Claire (Williams, the deputy team principal, ed. ) and discuss the matter further? This was the real moment I realized that things were moving in Formula 1 and I needed to get in before I missed the opportunity.".

Russell's desire to join the Circus, therefore, was such that it pushed him to organize his first approach with Williams on his own initiative: “I always believe that it is better to go directly to the source, rather than through people of the caliber of Toto (Wolff, ed.) or anyone else at Mercedes. I've known Paddy since he was at Mercedes, so there was a bit of a relationship and I felt more than comfortable picking up the phone and arranging a meeting with him and Claire.".

Russell comes from a season, the current one, which will most likely crown him champion of formula 2. A significant "plus" for the success of the negotiation: “When you get into the trading period coming off bad weekends, it's hard to sell yourself” - He admitted. “When you come back from a victory, as they say, you take on the value of your last race. Winning races at crucial moments helps a lot.".