George Russell will make his debut for Mercedes this weekend as the team confirms he’ll fill in for Lewis Hamilton.
The seven-time champion was ruled out of the Sakhir Grand Prix after testing positive for coronavirus on Monday.
Russell, who is part of Mercedes’s young driver programme, has been released from his commitments with Williams for the race to join Mercedes alongside Valtteri Bottas.
Team Principal Toto Wolff said: “First and foremost, I wish to thank our loyal partners at Williams for their collaboration and open-mindedness in making it possible for George to race for Mercedes this weekend. The conversations with the team at Williams were positive and pragmatic, and those were the key factors in reaching an agreement.
“It will not be a straightforward task for George to make the transition from the Williams to the W11, but he is race-ready and has detailed understanding of the 2020 tyres and how they perform on this generation of cars. George has shown impressive form this year with Williams, playing an instrumental role in their climb up the grid, and I am optimistic that he will deliver a strong performance alongside Valtteri, who will be a demanding reference for him.
“This race will mark a small milestone for us, as we see a member of our Junior programme compete for the works Mercedes team for the first time. We have a job to do this weekend, and the full focus of our sporting efforts will be behind Valtteri and George in order to maximise our points score as a team. But, of course, our thoughts are also with Lewis, and we will be supporting him as much as we can to make a rapid recovery during his period of self-isolation.”
Hear from @GeorgeRussell63 as he reacts to this morning's news.#SakhirGP 🇧🇭 | #WeAreWilliams 💙 pic.twitter.com/1v9OyBvTrQ
— Williams Racing (@WilliamsRacing) December 2, 2020
Russell said: “Firstly, I want to say a huge thank you to everybody at Williams for giving me this opportunity. I might be wearing a different race suit this weekend, but I’m a Williams driver and I’ll be cheering my team on every step of the way. I see this as a great chance to learn from the best outfit on the grid right now and to come back as an improved driver, with even more energy and experience to help push Williams further up the grid. A big thank you also to Mercedes for putting their faith in me. Obviously, nobody can replace Lewis, but I’ll give my all for the team in his absence from the moment I step in the car. Most importantly, I wish him a speedy recovery. I’m really looking forward to the opportunity and can’t wait to get out on track this week.”
The move leaves a seat vacant at Williams, which will be filled by the team’s reserve driver Jack Aitken. It will be the F2 driver’s first race in Formula 1.
In a statement released by Williams, Aitken said: “I’m absolutely over the moon to have the opportunity to make my debut with Williams this coming weekend and I am extremely happy for George to have his chance too! I really mean it when I say I’ve felt very much at home here since I joined Williams earlier this year, so to get my chance to help the team try to achieve that elusive points finish is an extremely satisfying occasion to say the least. I’ll be doing all I can to prepare in the coming days, but truthfully, I feel like I have been ready since Melbourne. I also want to wish Lewis well in his recovery, and good luck to George getting the chance to drive the Mercedes this weekend.”
Ready for his @F1 debut 🙌@JaitkenRacer looks ahead to an exciting weekend in Bahrain!#SakhirGP 🇧🇭 | #WeAreWilliams 💙 pic.twitter.com/xBKPe6HWpg
— Williams Racing (@WilliamsRacing) December 2, 2020
Acting Williams team principal Simon Roberts said: “Our long-term partnership and George’s affiliation with Mercedes is no secret, and so I’m delighted George has this unique opportunity to join Mercedes, the current Constructors’ Champions. We have been working hard to ensure that an agreement could be made with Mercedes to allow him this fantastic opportunity. George very much remains a Williams driver and we look forward to him returning to us fresh from this experience and wish him a successful race this weekend.
“We are also thrilled this means we are able to give another British talent in Jack Aitken the opportunity to make his Formula One race debut. Jack joined Williams at the start of this season, and despite COVID-19 restrictions meaning we haven’t been able to interact with him as much as we would like, he has quickly become a much-liked member of the team. We look forward to seeing him build on his previous experience driving the car in practice, to see what he can do in a qualifying and race situation.”
Aitken sits 14th in the F2 championship, with two podiums while racing for Campos this season.