Russell very confident in successful F1 career of De Vries

Nyck de Vries may finally compete in Formula 1 next season. The new AlphaTauri driver had hoped for a chance in the motorsport class for years, but each time teams did not dare to take him on. George Russell thinks this is the right time, he told in conversation with Motorsport.com.

The Brit knows De Vries well. Not only did the men meet frequently in the past while karting, they are also working together at Mercedes this season. It caused Russell to develop a lot of respect for De Vries who worked hard over the years.

Therefore, Russell was not surprised that AlphaTauri ended up with the Dutchman. Indeed, according to the Mercedes driver, De Vries was up for the challenge. "Out of the karting boys Nyck was the only one who hadn’t made it to F1 who probably deserved to make it to F1," he reveals in the interview.

Russell believes in De Vries' F1 success

This season at Williams, De Vries already showed what he is capable of. The driver was allowed to replace Alexander Albon once in the Italian Grand Prix and was immediately successful in it. He finished ninth at Monza, taking two points for the British formation.

Earlier this week, however, De Vries revealed that he also had some luck in Italy. It, therefore, remains to be seen how he will do for AlphaTauri in 2023. Russell is confident. "He’s got all the possibilities to be a great F1 driver," he said.