Lewis Hamilton's 400th F1 Start Sends George Russell Back to His Karting Autograph-Hunting Days
· Yahoo Sports
There was a time in F1 when George Russell was just a young kid on the block, trying to make his way into the big leagues of Formula racing. At the time, Lewis Hamilton was already fighting for world championships, with a young Russell chasing him for an autograph. While the roles may have since evolved with the two men sharing the F1 grid and Hamilton about to start his 400th career race, the Mercedes driver still hasn’t forgotten about the fact that he wanted an autograph from his childhood hero.
“400 for Lewis (Hamilton). Wow! That’s pretty serious. I, actually, was looking back at some footage recently of the first day I ever met him, chasing him for that autograph at a go-kart track in England called ‘PF.’ Yeah, we both look quite different,’ said Russell to the Mercedes camp in a recent message for his ex-teammate.
Visit bettingx.bond for more information.
View this post on Instagram
He added, “So much respect for Lewis. He’s obviously achieved on track (and) what he stands for, off track. He’s a top bloke, so, yeah, impressive.”
As for Hamilton, the British driver has set his sights on continuing to win races and prove the doubters wrong. Back when he was about to make his 300th race start, the No. 44 driver was told that no driver in the history of the sport had won a race after hitting 300 starts. Hamilton proved them wrong and went on to win three races.
Now that he’s hitting 400 starts, he faces a similar situation, but the 41-year-old is confident he can prove the naysayers wrong again.
Lewis Hamilton Had a Special Message for George Russell Before Mexico City
Lewis Hamilton had a special message for George Russell before the Mexico City GP. (Source: MEGA)But away from the spectacle of a 400th career race start, Hamilton hasn’t forgotten about his ex-teammate and the tough times he has been going through for most of the 2026 campaign. At the start of the season, Russell looked like the driver to beat for the championship, but Kimi Antonelli came out of nowhere to clinch the title in his second season with the team.
Speaking about the gap between the drivers at his previous team, Hamilton couldn’t help but scratch his head over what the challenges have been on Russell’s side of the garage. He did note that almost all of the difficulties have been on Russell’s car.
While Hamilton feels Russell has still showcased great pace all year round, it’s a case of two steps forward and two steps back for his fellow Brit. Nonetheless, the 41-year-old remains confident Russell will “bounce back. You know, every weekend he comes back and gives his best.”
Lewis Hamilton is confident George Russell will bounce back stronger. (Source: MEGA)Meanwhile, Hamilton did not want to take away from Antonelli’s achievements this season as he made sure to clarify that the 20-year-old was winning on merit. The Italian driver has delivered every time his team needed him to, and that is the true mark of a champion in the eyes of Hamilton.
George Russell Hoping To Take Inspiration From Lewis Hamilton at Interlagos
Heading into the Sao Paulo GP, Russell will face an uphill battle after confirming that he will be taking a fifth internal combustion engine (ICE) for the season. Given that each driver is capped at four units per season, the 28-year-old will be taking on a five-place grid penalty for the Interlagos outing.
| George Russell Aims for Hamilton-Like Performance After Brazil Penalty:
— This is Formula 1 (@ThisIsFormu1a1) November 6, 2026
- George Russell will face a five-place grid penalty at the São Paulo Grand Prix due to a change in his car's internal combustion engine. This decision was made by Mercedes as part of their seasonal… pic.twitter.com/3npiZqgU6j
However, Russell is not looking at the situation as a setback; rather, he is taking it as an opportunity to do something similar to what Hamilton once did. The No. 63 driver is hoping to take inspiration from Hamilton’s 2021 antics, where he overcame a significantly bigger setback.
The now 41-year-old was given a 10-place drop for a similar infringement, forcing him to start the race in P10 despite topping the qualifying session.
Hamilton would then blitz past the entire grid and pass Max Verstappen on lap 59 of the race to take the win. Thus, Russell feels that his situation is a lot more manageable and wants to take this opportunity to turn an unwanted setback into a strong result.