Niki Lauda privately called four-win F1 driver a future world champion before he’d even made his debut

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Niki Lauda was involved in the management of three different Formula 1 teams after his legendary racing career. Lauda ranks in the top 10 all-time for world championships after his triumphs in 1975, 1977 and 1984.

Nine years after his last title, the Austrian returned to F1 as a consultant for Ferrari. He was ousted by Jean Todt in 1995, just before the team signed Michael Schumacher.

Lauda resurfaced at Jaguar, a forerunner of the Red Bull team, in 2001 and recruited Guenther Steiner to help him run the team. But he only lasted 18 months.

He finally found stability at Mercedes after joining in 2012 as non-executive chairman. Lauda, who helped bring Lewis Hamilton to Brackley, saw the team win 12 championships (six drivers’, six constructors’) before he died in 2019.

Niki Lauda knew George Russell would be special, but his prediction hasn’t yet come true

After Schumacher’s departure, Mercedes fielded Hamilton and Nico Rosberg for four straight seasons. Rosberg abruptly retired when he won the 2016 championship, which prompted the team to recruit Valtteri Bottas.

Bottas was a dependable number two but he could only challenge Hamilton occasionally. Mercedes, though, knew they had a top-tier talent emerging.

They recruited George Russell to their driving academy in 2017 after he finished third in the European F3 championship. He went onto win the GP3 title.

According to Roger Benoit, Lauda was certain at the outset that Russell would become a world champion one day. He made his debut on loan at Williams in 2019 and finally replaced Bottas for the 2022 season.

“I’ve never been a big fan of Russell like I used to be of Bottas,” Benoit said on the Motorsport Magazin Talk YouTube channel. “Maybe I’ll be proven wrong one day, because in 2017, Niki Lauda introduced me to Russell in Brazil and said, ‘I’m going to introduce you to the future world champion’.

• READ MORE: Niki Lauda was once told he would ‘never be great’ by F1 driver who won just five races for Ferrari

“Niki was mostly right, but I think we’ll have to wait a bit longer. Next year, the Mercedes engine will be so superior that they will be able to deliver their performance in two or three races in a row. Niki, good work.”

Why George Russell believes he can be the next Michael Schumacher

Russell has only won four Grands Prix so far, most recently standing on the top step in Canada. But that largely reflects the limitations of his machinery – his teammates have only taken two victories in that time.

As Benoit says, there’s optimism that Mercedes will be out in front next year based on their anticipated engine superiority. McLaren and Williams will, of course, have the same power unit.

Russell believes he can replicate Schumacher, who had to wait until his fifth season at Ferrari before he won the championship. He then produced the most dominant run the sport has ever seen.

Russell thought he’d be a champion by now, but he’s still confident he can achieve that goal – and prove Lauda right – at Mercedes. He’s expected to sign a new contract imminently after Max Verstappen committed to Red Bull.