George Russell has ‘no doubt’ he will be an F1 World Champion in ‘my time will come’ prediction

George Russell said he has “no doubt” his time to fight for an F1 World Championship will come as he nears his 150th race in the sport.

This weekend’s Singapore Grand Prix will be Russell’s 146th start in Formula 1 but the 27-year-old has as of yet been unable to challenge for a title.

George Russell makes F1 title prediction

Having completed his education at Williams, Russell joined Mercedes at precisely the wrong moment as the once-dominant team fell away from title contention in 2022.

Since then, Russell has finished no higher than fourth in the Drivers’ Championship. Meanwhile, Max Verstappen, who is only a year older than Russell, has won four titles and Lando Norris or Oscar Piastri, both younger than Russell, are set to win their first this season.

Despite only having four race wins to his name, Russell believes he is ready to battle for an F1 title and said he has “no doubt” his time will come to do so.

“I feel ready to fight for a world championship,” he told The Straits Times. “I felt ready for a long time. But there can only ever be one driver and one team. And it’s very rare you see two drivers from two different teams fighting for a championship… but you should never lose hope.

“And I’m 27 years old. I’m fighting every single day because I don’t know when my chance will come. Maybe it starts from this weekend in Singapore… maybe it’s 2026, maybe it’s 2028. But I have no doubt my time will come.

“I like to look at the here and now and the short-term future and I know that if I do everything right today, and everything right tomorrow, and everything right the day after, my long-term goal will be achieved.”

More on Mercedes from PlanetF1

Tables turned? Villeneuve claims ‘annoyed’ Russell is making Mercedes wait

Wolff reveals nature of Max Verstappen talks amid manager claims

Russell and Mercedes’ hopes are that 2026 will bring a change of fortune as sweeping regulation changes come into effect, particularly focused on the power unit. The last time major changes were made to F1 engines, it was Mercedes that emerged as the dominant force and many predict the German manufacturer to do so again next year.

Russell described 2026 as a “huge opportunity” for the team and said that while it still wants to finish second this year, it is “all in for 2026.”

“Even just yesterday, I was driving the simulator with the 2026 car and the 2026 engine,” he said.

“It’s a huge opportunity for us as Mercedes, every team. It’s a huge opportunity. We recognise we cannot win the championship this season. We’re of course, fighting to finish second, and that is our objective. But the truth is, we want to be all in for 2026 and that’s what we’re aiming to do.”

Read next: Explained: What the weighty issue of the FIA heat hazard means for Singapore GP