George Russell reacts to his duel with Lewis Hamilton on the last lap of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton overtook George Russell on the final lap of the race in Abu Dhabi, to secure fourth place on the grid. The seven-time world champion delivered an impressive performance, climbing from 16th place to fourth place for his final race with Mercedes.

Lewis Hamilton now leaves Mercedes to join Ferrari, while George Russell will become the team leader alongside the 18-year-old prodigy, Andrea Kimi Antonelli.

« The season is now over. We have been lagging behind all weekend, and I think it was a quite symbolic end with Lewis, just one second behind after these three years together. Honestly, I am really happy for him that he had a great last race, because I think he deserved it. The team deserved to offer him this farewell. And yes, I am just glad it’s over now », said George Russell after the race.

I learned a lot from Lewis.

George Russell has held his own against Lewis Hamilton on the track, outqualifying him 19 times compared to 5 this year. Over their three years together, Hamilton has only outscored Russell by three points in total, underlining just how evenly matched they have been since the start of their partnership in 2022.

Before their duel in the final lap, Mercedes boss Toto Wolff intervened on the radio to tell Russell:

« George, to state the obvious, remains clean with Lewis. » Russell ensured that this reminder was not necessary, asserting to have « a lot of respect » for his teammate.

« Of course, of course. Toto doesn’t need to say it. Lewis and I have so much respect for each other, we have always raced hard, but fairly, until the end. But in the end, for me, having had these three years together, I learned so much from Lewis as a driver and as a person. Today, he deserved to finish ahead of me, because he was faster all weekend.

« And as I said, I am just proud to have shared these years with him.