– Former Haas Formula 1 team principal Günther Steiner is convinced: George Russell could already be looking at options outside of Mercedes. He hints that the British driver could be evaluating a potential move to Audi for the 2028 Formula 1 season.
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Although he has a cockpit at Mercedes, Russell’s future with the Brackley team has become a topic of discussion following the impressive performances of his teenage teammate Andrea Kimi Antonelli.
The Italian rose to become the youngest driver ever to lead the Drivers’ World Championship after his consecutive wins in China and Japan and has continued to improve since. Before the summer break, Antonelli leads the standings with 219 points. Behind him are Lewis Hamilton with 169 points and Russell with 160 points.
Steiner against Mercedes’ declarations
In an appearance on the podcast The Red Flags, Steiner notes that the internal dynamics at Mercedes are already pushing Russell to consider his options for the future. Besides his duel with Antonelli, Russell might also feel the pressure from growing speculation about a connection between four-time world champion Max Verstappen and Mercedes.
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While Mercedes motorsport chief Toto Wolff has confirmed that he wants to keep his current driver lineup for 2027, and Russell has also reaffirmed his commitment to his team, Steiner argues that Russell could be looking towards Audi for 2028.
“There is great interest from drivers to go to Audi for 2028,” he says. “For next year they are pretty set, but 2028 there might be an opportunity at Audi.”
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Audi making solid progress
“That is a pretty interesting team because it is making good progress. It seems to be on the right track with what they are doing. I think there would be some candidates there. Carlos [Sainz] for sure.”
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“I think George is also looking around now because he knows he is now with Kimi. He doesn’t want to stay with Kimi for the rest of his life because there he knows where he stands for the rest of his life. So he is trying to find new opportunities.”
At the start of the 2026 season, Audi completed the full takeover of Sauber and secured Mattia Binotto as well as former Red Bull sporting director Jonathan Wheatley in leadership roles. The manufacturer has been developing its power unit since 2022.
First driver instead of in the shadow?
Audi has the backing of an automotive heavyweight in the form of the Volkswagen Group, which has invested significant resources to provide the means and technical know-how necessary to build a winning operation from the ground up.
Of course, none of this means that Russell will leave Brackley for the rival German outfit, but an Audi factory cockpit for 2028 would at least give Russell a project he can control himself, instead of a throne he currently has to fight to defend.
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