George Russell has warned F1 that the championship's current boom could quickly come crashing to the ground, like a Jenga tower.
The 27-year-old is one of the more outspoken drivers in the F1 paddock, something that complements his role as a Grand Prix Drivers' Association (GPDA) director.
In the position since 2021, the three-time grand prix winner has overseen a period of relative tension between F1 and its governing body, the FIA.
That is in large part due to the premiership of current president Mohammed Ben Sulayem, who has proven to be a polarising figure in motorsport.
As the relationship between the two parties has grown more strained and political, Russell has needed to become more involved in the drivers' union than might otherwise have been. However, he insists the bulk of the work is still being done by others.
"I'll be honest: Alex Wurz [GPDA President] and Anastasia Fowle, our legal advisor, handle most of the heavy lifting," the Mercedes driver told Motorsport-total.
"But of course, over the last 18 months, we've been much more involved than we originally expected because things have become so divisive.
"The developments were quite surprising, even for me personally. I was much more involved, but you have to find a balance. When I joined the GPDA, I didn't really intend to be so politically involved with the FIA, because that wasn't really a factor at all at that point. It was more of a cooperative affair."
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'If a single piece falls, the entire structure can collapse'
Whilst the championship has continued to enjoy significant growth since 2021, by still riding the wave of popularity instigated by the Netflix docu-series Drive to Survive, Russell is aware of how difficult it is to solidify that groundswell of interest, given the precarious nature of achieving sustainable success.
But despite the hostile atmosphere between the two bodies, he has not been dissuaded from his role with the GPDA.
When asked if those tensions could make him want to step away from the position, the British driver declined and highlighted how critical the juncture at which F1 finds itself is as his reason for staying put.
"No, I wouldn't. Because right now, we're riding a wave as a sport - but if you fall off the wave, things can go downhill very quickly," he replied.
"So we all need to remain very vigilant and not take Formula 1's current position for granted. The teams are doing a great job. Liberty and Stefano [Domenicali] are doing a fantastic job with marketing and promotion, as they recently did with Lego, for example."
Likening the situation to a Jenga tower, Russell underlined how important it is for F1 to avoid becoming a house of cards that comes crashing down.
"But it's like a Jenga tower: If a single piece falls, the entire structure can collapse," he explained. "So we mustn't let up now, while we're in this strong position - because, as I said, things can change very quickly.
"The upswing can disappear just as unexpectedly as it came. That's why this phase is perhaps more crucial than ever."
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