Sky Sports F1 pundit Karun Chandhok believes even a Formula 1 title win for George Russell may not be enough to save his Mercedes future. The Silver Arrows have confirmed a new contract for the Brit and sources from within the team have suggested that his deal is a multi-year one.
But it is not certain whether those years are all guaranteed and, even if they are, F1 driver contracts always contain levers that can be pulled by one party or another. And Russell’s future with Mercedes will never be certain for as long as they are interested in the idea of convincing Max Verstappen to join them.
Team principal Toto Wolff was open earlier this year about his exploring the idea of convincing the Dutchman to quit Red Bull and join the Silver Arrows. And it is highly likely that interest will be revived in 2026 should Verstappen consider a change of scenery, his managed already having warned that his client will look elsewhere if Red Bull are not competitive next year.
Russell has enjoyed his best F1 season to date this year and still it looked as though he would have been the one on the chopping block if Verstappen joined. And if Mercedes live up to the hype around their new engine next year and emerge as the sport’s dominant force, the Brit is in a prime position to build on his form in this campaign and challenge for the championship.
But his situation is complicated by the fact Mercedes also serve as his personal management team, as well as his employer. Chandhok referenced that potential conflict of interest when speaking on Sky Sports’ Ted’s Podbook show, having been asked if winning the championship next year would guarantee Russell’s long-term place with the team.
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He replied: “Why not? Well, Frank Williams did it four times. Frank Williams lost four world champions. To me, this whole experience, it should be a kind of a, not a red light, but an orange light, at least for George, that it’s time for him to separate his management away from the race team he’s with.
“It’s put him in the passenger seat of this whole process. It’s been dragged out. In effect, Toto’s been negotiating on both sides of the table for this deal. And really, for ’27, if Max is a contender – and he absolutely is a contender for that seat for ’27 – then George has got to spend, I think, next year trying to get control of his own destiny.
“He needs to put himself in the driving seat of his own contract process, his own decision-making process, and also understand what’s happening [in] the rest of the market. Because as long as Mercedes has been managing him, why would they do that?
“Whereas he needs to understand, is there an option to go to Aston Martin for ’27? Is there an option to [go to] Ferrari? Who knows what the Honda power unit will be like? Maybe that’s the place to be, or the Audi one. Or the Red Bull Ford.”