£3m-a-year star told he’s the ‘most underrated’ driver in Formula 1 after the Sao Paulo Grand Prix

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The end of the 2024 Formula 1 season is fast approaching and just one triple-header remains before the winter break.

Max Verstappen is on course to win his fourth Drivers’ Championship and only needs a victory at the Las Vegas Grand Prix to put the title beyond Lando Norris’s reach.

While there is still a lot to be decided between now and the finale in Abu Dhabi, excitement is already building around the 2025 campaign.

There are plenty of driver and team switches taking place over the winter, with Sauber announcing the signing of Gabriel Bortoleto, while Lewis Hamilton will leave Mercedes after more than a decade for Ferrari.

It’s an opportunity for many drivers to prove their worth and that they’re ready to make a charge to the front of the grid when the regulations change dramatically in 2026.

Journalist and presenter Tom Clarkson was speaking on the F1 Nation Podcast after the Sao Paulo Grand Prix and wanted to praise one driver who will have the perfect chance to impress next year.

George Russell looked like he was the favourite to win the race in Brazil on Sunday at one point after beating Norris off the line at a very wet Interlagos.

Russell was frustrated after being caught out by the red flag, but Clarkson believes that the £3m-a-year driver is the most underrated racer on the F1 grid despite having taken part in 125 Grand Prix.

George Russell told he’s the ‘most underrated’ driver in Formula 1 right now

Russell had a very strong race weekend in Brazil in a car that was incredibly difficult to drive.

Hamilton simply couldn’t get any performance out of his Mercedes, making Russell’s spell leading the Grand Prix even more impressive.

Talking about the British driver when mentioning which drivers were the most impressive at Interlagos, Clarkson said: “I actually think I’m going to mention in dispatches George Russell.

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“I do think that Mercedes has been a handful all weekend and George yet again, I’ll say it again, is the most underrated driver in Formula 1.

“George Russell has made Lewis Hamilton look ordinary and you don’t do that unless you’re really, really, really good. So well done to George.”

George Russell and Lewis Hamiton have struggled with Mercedes all season

Mercedes will finish fourth in the 2024 Constructors’ Championship no matter what happens during the final three races of the campaign.

Aston Martin have barely scored a point in the second half of the season but are still Mercedes’s closest challenger in the standings, despite being nearly 300 points behind.

Red Bull have a 162-point lead over Mercedes ahead of them, meaning the rest of this season is likely going to be used to prepare for next year.

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Hamilton and Russell have disagreed over what’s causing Mercedes’s issues this season and new driver Kimi Antonelli will hope that many of those problems are fixed by the time he’s in the car.

While Mercedes will be working hard on their 2025 car, the focus will quickly switch to the first car of the new era of F1 the following year as closing the gap to the top three teams only has a limited upside.

Russell spent three years at Williams overperforming in a terrible car and returned to Mercedes just as they stopped being a dominant force in the sport.

He’ll be hoping that the Silver Arrows deliver a car sooner rather than later that can showcase his talents.