‘Some Unrest’ At Mercedes Over Bottas, Russell Could Replace Him In 2021 – Reports

Williams driver George Russell could replace Valtteri Bottas at Mercedes before the end of the 2021 season, the Daily Mail reported this week, citing a Silver Arrows source.



The Finn took pole position last time out in Portugal, but he didn’t have the pace to match his Mercedes team-mate Sir Lewis Hamilton and he lost time to Max Verstappen due to a slow pit-stop and a mechanical issue.



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Following his P3 finish at Portimao, Bottas is currently fourth in the Drivers’ Standings – with less than half the points of his team-mate.



It has long been known that Russell has a strong chance of joining Mercedes next year, but the young Brit could reportedly make an in-season switch.



“There is some unrest at the factory about Valtteri,” a Mercedes source told the Daily Mail .



“He is not up to it, which was made clearer by the job we saw Russell do in Bahrain.”



Earlier this month, when asked about Mercedes’ driver line-up plans for next year, team principal Toto Wolff said they need to see how the coming races pan out before making a decision.



“I hope one day that I wake up and it becomes clear,” Wolff said.



“I think we need to look into the season and how the next races unfold and then it is a judgement call I believe. Not a very scientific response but I haven’t got any at the moment.”



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