Mercedes signs Russell as F1 junior driver

Mercedes have signed British driver George Russell to their junior driver programme ahead of his maiden GP3 campaign.

18-year-old Russell is one of the rising stars in British motor racing having won the BRDC Formula 4 championship in 2014, the same year he received the prestigious McLaren Autosort BRDC Award.

This season he will compete in GP3 with ART Grand Prix with support from Mercedes.

The Brackley squad has announced that Russell has become the third member of the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Young Driver Programme, joining incumbents Pascal Wehrlein and Esteban Ocon.

“George has shown impressive form in the junior categories and we’ve been keeping a close eye on him for a while now,” said Mercedes boss Toto Wolff.

“It’s still early days in his career but we see great potential in him.”

Russell, who competed in last year’s Formula 3 where he was third in the standings, added: “It is great to be a part of the Junior Programme. It is an incredible opportunity to have the backing of the Formula One World Champions.

“I’m proud to have been given this kind of recognition for all the hard work that’s gone into my career over the years so far.”