Ep 11: George Russell is a Formula 1 Driver for Williams Racing and (Many Believe) a Future World Champion
Our guest today is Formula 1 driver for Williams Racing, George Russell. He is currently at the 2021 Portuguese Grand Prix, the third of 23 races in the longest F1 season to date. You might already be a long-time fan of F1, you might be unfamiliar, or you might have watched Drive to Survive on Netflix but, in today’s episode, you’ll discover that there is plenty of overlap between cycling and F1. In 2020, we saw the UCI Road Cycling World Championships take place in Imola, Italy, and a month or so later, the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix took place at the exact same venue, with bikes and F1 cars using the same start/finish line at the Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari race track. Cycling is also a large part of how F1 drivers train and maintain their fitness. George talks about the role that cycling plays in his training, both physical and mental, and he shares who among the grid he believes would be off the front and off the back in a race. We also discuss the recent crash with Valtteri Bottas at Emilia and his thoughts on the new sprint quality format. Tune in today!
Key Points From This Episode:
Why George no longer chooses to participate in track walks, opting to cycle it instead.
Rob tells the story of how he and George met at the 2018 US Grand Prix.
George talks candidly about his recent controversial crash with Valtteri Bottas at Emilia.
What role cycling plays in George’s training, both for fitness and psychologically.
Hear what it’s like cycling around the racing circuit.
Where George reckons he would stack up on the grid in terms of his cycling speed.
Becoming naturally conscious of racing lines and apex speeds, in both cycling and F1 racing.
What George took away from the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix, including the psychological toll that fighting for victories can take.
Overcoming the small doubt that lingers in the back of his mind.
George responds to a hypothetical about which tracks he would choose in a five race championship against Lewis Hamilton.
Hear his thoughts on coming to a brand new track in Miami for the Grand Prix in 2022.
George shares his thoughts on the new sprint quality format.
Whether or not he thinks he can challenge for points consistently throughout the season.
Tweetables:
“I do a fair amount of cycling, firstly for fitness, secondly, psychologically, it takes my mind away and I find it relaxing.” — @GeorgeRussell63 [0:11:40]
“A lap in qualifying is 90 seconds long. 90 seconds can make or break your whole race weekend. Psychologically, you’ve got to be in the right frame of mind.” — @GeorgeRussell63 [0:18:51]
“There’s nowhere in the world that I get more adrenaline than driving a lap around Monaco.” — @GeorgeRussell63 [0:22:01]