16/10/2025 17:00
George Russell has revealed how he came to be part of the Mercedes
young driver programme, sharing the email he sent team principal
Toto Wolff in late 2014. The five-time grand prix winner, who has
just signed a contract extension with the Brackley-based squad, was
just 16 years old at the time and was preparing to make the step to
Formula 3. However, his parents had told him they could no longer
continue funding his fledgling career in motorsport. Russell took
decisive action. Having obtained Wolff's email address, he shot off
a quick message to the Austrian shortly after the season-ending Abu
Dhabi Grand Prix. "When I was 16, I realised I had to make my own
way," he wrote in a personal essay for The Players' Tribune . "I
was in my very first year of cars, in British Formula 4, and my
parents told me that they didn't have the funds anymore to finance
my career. "In my head, everything shifted in that moment. At 16,
two years from being a legal adult, you're starting to feel like a
man, you know? But in that moment, I realised how far I was from
that. It was like, it's time for me to step up and make this happen
for myself . "At the time, I had the phone numbers of some Formula
One bosses. So I started calling people, I was emailing people,
talking to anybody who would give me the time. My manager had
actually gotten Toto's email from one of his other drivers, but he
thought I should be the one to take it, so he gave it to me. He
believed in me, so he was like, 'Get an email sent off quick.' "And
listen, it didn't exactly take a rocket scientist to work out… Had
to have been something like [email protected]! "I actually
remember it very well. It was the Tuesday after the Abu Dhabi Grand
Prix 2014. I wrote something like: ' Dear Toto, My name's George
Russell. I race in Formula 4. I've just won the championship this
season. I'm progressing into Formula 3 next year, and I'd love to
sit down with you to have your advice for my future career.' "I
didn't want to send a big CV like, This is me, sign me, sign me,
sign me . I don't know why. I just said, 'I just want to have your
advice.' I thought that was the best way to get face time with
him." More on George Russell Wolff's rapid response Russell did not
need to wait around for long. According to the 27-year-old, Wolff
replied within a quarter of an hour. Although he was in contact
with McLaren and Red Bull at the time, he felt the Mercedes boss
was "genuine" and a first meeting was arranged for early 2015. "He
replied within 15 minutes," Russell wrote. "I'd had some good
conversations with McLaren, had prior contacts with Red Bull, but
honestly, Toto was just … different. He seemed so genuine. "We met
at the Mercedes headquarters near Silverstone, in January 2015.
Toto always tells a story about me walking in in a suit and tie,
carrying a briefcase… I don't think it was quite as extreme as
that. Might as well get that on the record. But I definitely had my
nicest pair of shoes on. I always used to dress like an old man
when I was younger, so I would've had a shirt on, and probably a
V-neck jumper or something. I looked quite smart as a 16-year-old
at the time." Russell recalled being introduced to some of the key
figures at Mercedes, which had just won the first of
eight-successive F1 constructors' championships, including Gwen
Lagrue, who headed up the junior programme. "Anyway, I walked into
the room, and there were six other people there who were all the
heads of the various departments," Russell stated. "Basically, all
the top dogs. The head of the junior program, who'd only just been
signed, Gwen Lagrue. The head of the DTM, which was the German
Touring Car Masters. A couple of other members of the F1 team. Then
there was Toto himself." The British driver reflected on the "leap
of faith" the team showed in signing and — at that stage — building
its driver academy around him. "And yeah, it was basically just a
conversation for them to get to know me better, and decide whether
they wanted to take a bit of a leap of faith doing something
different and signing a young driver to, at that point in time, a
program that didn't exist," he added. "I think I'd already been on
their radar. Basically, I wasn't just a bloke off the street who
sent a nice email. It wasn't totally out of the blue. They'd
already been talking about my potential, they'd just hired Gwen to
head up the academy, and everything just clicked."
