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Having already denied that George Russell’s departure to Sakhir is a “shootout” for the Valtteri Bottas seat, Toto Wolff also says he will “have no influence” on the contract talks with Lewis Hamilton.
Russell is competing for Mercedes in this weekend’s Sakhir Grand Prix, called to replace Hamilton after the reigning World Champion tested positive for Covid-19.
Hamilton’s positive test opened the door for Mercedes to get a better look at their junior driver Russell, who has been circling the back of the grid with Williams and has yet to score a single championship point.
The 22-year-old demonstrated on Friday what he can do if he gets a better car, topping the timesheets in both practice sessions on Friday.
Russell’s cameo comes at an interesting time, as Mercedes has yet to secure Hamilton on a new contract and talks are expected to begin after the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Wolff has denied that a good performance by Russell can make Mercedes play hard with the seven-time world champion.
“We have talked about having George in the car,” he told the media at the Bahrain circuit. “We know what we have with Lewis and he knows what he has with the team.
“Such a situation would never be used as a kind of bargaining power, neither by him nor by us; it could work both ways.
“I have a lot of respect for who he is, how he drives, his records and what happens this week or next will not influence our conversations.”
He added: “This weekend and maybe next weekend will give us more insight into our general understanding of George’s performances, but we know we will race next year with Lewis and Valtteri and where we are in 2022 will depend on us. The 2022 season is going to end, and not because of George’s performance at an oval in Bahrain and at a season finale in Abu Dhabi. “
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As for his contract talks with Hamilton, Wolff says they are on hold while the 35-year-old is isolated.
He said, “Well the timeline is getting delayed until he recovers. We know we have to do it, quite consciously, both, but the priority now is for him to recover and be negative again.
“And then we will meet, or Zoom, to put the pen on the paper.”
Wolff has previously denied that Russell’s career could be considered a “showdown” between the Brit and Bottas for a Mercedes seat.
“No, not at all,” Wolff said. “I heard this rumor and obviously you can’t call it a shootout when it comes to a race or two. That doesn’t give you any meaningful data at all.
“If George gets it right, it is an indication that one day he will be in a good car and hopefully race for victories and the World Championships, but that’s a long way off. He knows.
“You just need to do a solid job, make no mistakes and continue with what you have done.
“There is no shooting. We have total confidence in Valtteri and loyalty as we have always had, and that is our position ”.
When asked how he would deal with Bottas if the Finn is defeated by Russell this weekend, Wolff insisted that he would not have to waste time appeasing his pilot.
“Valtteri has never been someone who needs to be reassured,” he said. “He knows where he stands, he knows his position in the team, how we support each other and we have to be realistic.
“George is a highly qualified young driver, one of the best qualified, so he is expected to be fast. Meet the team and this is a fifty second circuit where you have to be in the right place at the right time with the right engine modes.
“In that sense, this is going to be fine. We all expected George to be there, and we see how the weekend ends. “
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