Why George Russell is the right man for Mercedes

Formula One's worst-kept secret was finally officially confirmed after months of speculation when Valtteri Bottas was announced as an Alfa Romeo driver for 2022 on Monday, followed on Tuesday by confirmation that George Russell will take his place at Mercedes.

With Bottas on board, Mercedes have claimed the constructors' title in each of the last four years and they currently lead the team standings by 12 points ahead of Red Bull.

But there is no doubt this is the right move at the right time.

Lead driver Lewis Hamilton is the sport's most successful competitor, with 99 race wins and seven world championships. Hamilton has historically not had a good relationship with teammates who can challenge him. Fernando Alonso and Nico Rosberg can testify to that.

But Hamilton will turn 37 before the start of next season so it's time for Mercedes to look for his successor rather than a solid wingman, and Bottas is definitely not that.

The Finn earned a lofty reputation in his early days with Williams, being strongly linked with a move to Ferrari for a time. But he was drafted in at short notice by Mercedes when Rosberg decided to end his career after sealing the 2016 title.

In his first two seasons with the Silver Arrows, Bottas finished third and fifth in the standings while Hamilton added to his championship tally. The Finn moved up to third in this year's table after Sunday's Dutch Grand Prix podium finish, but was only fifth as recently as four races ago.

Why Russell? Apart from the obvious that he is a Mercedes junior driver and coming to the end of a three-year contract with Williams, Russell proved he can hack it at Mercedes with a sensational effort in Bahrain last year, subbing for a Covid-hit Hamilton.

The Norfolk native lost his record of never having been outqualified by a teammate, but lined up second to Bottas on the grid. After taking the lead at the start, Russell looked in control before a botched pitstop dropped him down the order. He recovered from that, again overtaking Bottas before a puncture saw him drop to the back, then fought his way back up to ninth, taking fastest lap along the way.

Some saw that performance from a man who had never previously scored a point in F1 as proof that anyone can win in a fast car.

But Russell wasn't just some guy pulled out of the crowd. He won the British Formula 4 championship in his first season of car racing, won the GP3 championship by 79 points and then the Formula Two title at the first attempt, beating Lando Norris and Alex Albon.

By comparison the current drivers championship leader Max Verstappen has not claimed a championship title since his karting days.

Changing teams is never easy. This season every driver who moved to a different team took time to adapt - Daniel Ricciardo is still struggling to get on top of his McLaren's foibles, while we certainly haven't yet seen the best of Sergio Perez in the Red Bull.

Carlos Sainz has driven for four teams in the last five seasons, and described the differences between cars as akin to racing in a different formula.

But that shouldn't be such an issue next year when things will be new for everybody.

There is a radical rule shake-up coming for 2022, when the cars will look very different from this year's machines. The aim is that the cars will be able to follow each other more closely without their aerodynamics being affected, and therefore the racing should be better.

Whether it works remains to be seen, but drastic rule changes tend to alter the pecking order.

Mercedes have been the dominant team since 2014 - the longest run of success for any team in F1 history. They are also the only outfit to have successfully defended the title following significant regulations upheaval.

Russell will be hoping they can repeat the trick.

Teen stars need to be nurtured

Novak Djokovic was a hot favourite to advance to the US Open semi-finals when he played Matteo Berrettini last night. The Serbian superstar is aiming to become the first male player to win all four Grand Slams in the same year since Rod Laver in 1969.

While Djokovic seems to have been around forever - it's more than ten years since he first reached the world number one ranking - three players at the beginning of their careers have provided a fascinating sub-plot to the fortnight in New York.

Teenagers Carlos Alcaraz, Leylah Annie Fernandez and Emma Raducanu all reached at least the quarter-finals, and while Alcaraz and Fernandez are already established in the world's top 100, it has been great to see Raducanu confirm that her fourth-round appearance at Wimbledon was no flash in the pan.

British qualifier Raducanu had been hugely impressive on her way to the last eight of her second career Grand Slam, and put the icing on the cake by overcoming Belinda Bencic on Wednesday night to reach the semi-final. Her future looks very bright.

Raducanu retired from her fourth-round match at Wimbledon when, by her own admission, she let the occasion get on top of her. As an 18-year-old who was virtually unheard of six months ago, that's quite understandable.

The exploits of fellow teens Alcaraz and Fernandez in New York have probably helped deflect some of the attention away from Raducanu, but with the likes of Naomi Osaka and Ben Stokes deciding to take breaks from their sports for mental health reasons, it is to be hoped tennis's governing bodies and the players' own support teams look after these young talents.

If she continues on her current path, Raducanu will be the centre of attention when Wimbledon rolls around next year. Hopefully she will have been prepared for the experience in a way that will allow her to show her potential on the court.

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