Valtteri Bottas sends George Russell warning ahead of Lewis Hamilton partnership

Valtteri Bottas has warned George Russell it is going to be next to impossible for him to beat Lewis Hamilton in the same Mercedes equipment during their time together as team-mates, with the Finn speaking from his own personal experience.

Bottas is going to be driving for Alfa Romeo in Formula 1 in 2022 after leaving the Mercedes team at the end of last season, having been there since the beginning of 2017.

In that time, he enjoyed race victories and pole positions, occasionally beating Hamilton on his day, but over the course of a season, he was never able to challenge Lewis for the championship.

And, speaking to The Sun, the Finn has said that it is the consistency of Hamilton that will make it hard for George to beat him whilst they are team-mates at Mercedes and therefore in the same level of car:

“I don’t see anyone else beating Lewis in the near future in the same machinery.

“George will adjust well because he has been with Mercedes for some years.

“But beating Lewis is not easy. I have experienced that. It is his consistency in his performances.

“Every driver has form that is a little bit up and down, but his baseline for performance is just so high.

“Even when he has a bad day it is not too bad. It is his consistency over the season.

“Another of his key strengths is his ability to adapt to different conditions, the skill to react to changes, be it set-up or whatever.

“This and his race-craft. His tyre management is a special skill and all these things are combined with talent.

“And he puts in the work, which not many people see, so he is hard to beat.

“I can be proud that on my day, I’ve been able to beat him. But not consistently enough to beat him over a season.”