George Russell handed 'slam dunk' backing in Mercedes contract hope

Former F1 driver Johnny Herbert believes George Russell's recent run of performances has placed him in the strongest position to negotiate a new deal with Mercedes.

Russell does not yet have a contract in place for the 2026 F1 campaign, however it is widely expected he will be retained by Mercedes.

RacingNews365 understands the Briton has rejected several offers from the Brackley-based squad as he pushes for better personal terms.

Last time out in Singapore, Russell produced an impressive performance to take pole position on Saturday before dominating en route to his fifth career win on Sunday.

While Herbert asserted Russell was deserving of an extension before Singapore, he highlighted the performance may have tipped the scales in his favour.

“He had achieved enough before Singapore,” Herbert told BettingLounge. 

“Now it should be a slam dunk for Mercedes, Toto and George who once again showed that special ability that he does have. 

“It’s not as if he consistently has the best car. But when it is in that window, George delivers. 

“That shows a fantastic strength that I think he will be able to take anywhere in the F1 paddock if he doesn’t get a deal that he wants from Mercedes.”

Russell is believed to be seeking long-term security at Mercedes, a team that is known to hold interest in bringing Max Verstappen across from Red Bull.

However, Herbert has called on Mercedes to back Russell for the years to come, insisting it would be “foolish” not to tie him to such a deal.

“Whatever team he goes to, he's got this inner confidence,” he said. 

“Some people don't like it on the outside because he's overly confident. I think people see it as arrogance.

“But it's not. It's just his way of expressing himself. Max does it differently. Max is very flippant with some of the comments when he's asked a question by the media sometimes. That's his way of dealing with it. But he does the job. 

“He doesn’t muck up races, He’s under pressure in the F1 pressure cooker and he delivers. So, it would be foolish if Mercedes didn’t give him his new long term deal. He deserves it. 

“And they haven't got another choice, put it that way.”