Former Haas boss Guenther Steiner believes George Russell has already started exploring alternatives for the future in Formula 1 and pointed to Audi as a possible destination for the British driver from 2028.
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Although Russell has a contract with Mercedes and both he and the team principal, Toto Wolff, have expressed the desire to maintain the partnership through 2027, Steiner understands that the internal team scenario may lead the driver to seek new paths.
A large part of this perception is related to Kimi Antonelli’s excellent performance. The Italian finished the first half of the season as championship leader, with 219 points, 50 ahead of Lewis Hamilton, while Russell is only in third place, with 160 points.
During an appearance on The Red Flags Podcast, Steiner stated that Antonelli’s rise, combined with rumors involving a possible arrival of Max Verstappen at Mercedes, may be making Russell rethink his future.
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“There is a lot of interest from drivers to go to Audi in 2028. For next year, they are practically already set, but maybe there is an opportunity in 2028. It is a very interesting project because they are evolving. They seem to be on the right track and I think there will be several candidates. Carlos Sainz, certainly. And I believe George is also looking around at the moment,” he said.
Steiner went further by suggesting that Russell may see few prospects of taking on the role of Mercedes’ lead driver while sharing the garage with Antonelli. “Knowing he is alongside Kimi, he does not want to spend the rest of his career as his teammate, because he knows exactly what his position within the team will be. Therefore, he is trying to find new opportunities,” he concluded.
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