4:26
Williams boss Claire Williams is tipping George Russell to be a future superstar of the sport after signing him for the 2019 season.
Williams would be “crazy” not to consider Esteban Ocon to fill their final seat in 2019, says team boss Claire Williams.
George Russell will form one half of the team’s driver line-up next year after signing a multi-year deal. But Williams have not named their second driver for next season as they consider to evaluate their options with Sergey Sirotkin and Robert Kubica thought to be frontrunners.
Sirotkin and Lance Stroll currently drive for the team, but Stroll is expected to join Force India after his father led a buy-out.
F1 2019: Schedule and line-ups
Russell joins Williams for 2019
“We are still doing a lot of evaluation work,” Williams told Sky Sports. “It’s a short short-list. We’re very happy with the drivers we are evaluating and it will not take us a long time to make that final decision. Of course Esteban is in the mix. We would be crazy not to be looking at him.”
Sirotkin has struggled to shine this year in a car critically short of pace while Kubica was appointed Williams’ reserve driver when he missed out on a 2018 race seat to Sirotkin.
Along with Ocon, Russell remains tied to Mercedes, and Williams are thought unlikely to appoint two drivers associated with a rival outfit. Two months ago, McLaren admitted Ocon’s relationship with Mercedes was a factor in their decision to appoint Lando Norris as Stoffel Vandoorne’s replacement.
But the young Frenchman is hugely regarded in F1 and considered to be one the sport’s future stars.
Who’s racing with who in F1 2019?
| MERCEDES | Lewis Hamilton | Valtteri Bottas |
| FERRARI | Sebastian Vettel | Charles Leclerc |
| RED BULL | Max Verstappen | Pierre Gasly |
| RENAULT | Daniel Ricciardo | Nico Hulkenberg |
| HAAS | Romain Grosjean | Kevin Magnussen |
| MCLAREN | Carlos Sainz | Lando Norris |
| FORCE INDIA | TBC | TBC |
| TORO ROSSO | Daniil Kvyat | TBC |
| SAUBER | Kimi Raikkonen | Antonio Giovinazzi |
| WILLIAMS | George Russell | TBC |
4:50
George Russell says he's fulfilling 'a lifelong dream' of driving in Formula 1, after signing for Williams for the 2019 season.
