Martin Brundle is of the opinion, that during the upcoming season, Lewis Hamilton will slowly not be invited into certain meetings, to maintain secrecy. Moreover, feels George Russell will be the one who will be seen transitioning into the leadership role.

While shedding light on the same, Brundle on the Sky F1 podcast said, as reported by Soymotor:

I think they will see it as a farewell tour. That's how I think that they should treat him and they will. And then wish him goodbye and hope he loses in a Ferrari. I think you have this transition point where Lewis will no longer be invited to meetings, and will not understand what is happening with the development of the car and in the simulator. The team, consciously and unconsciously, will favor George Russell.

The F1 veteran, with his comments, has made it quite clear that Russell is going to be the one who will be favored at Mercedes during the 2024 season. He has further indicated that this is a step that Toto Wolff and Co. have to take in order to have a bright future in the sport.

George Russell has a golden opportunity at Mercedes F1

While Martin Brundle has made it known that Russell will be favored this year, the latter has a tremendous opportunity on his hands. Hamilton has been with Mercedes since 2013 and has pretty much from the very beginning operated in the first driver role.

However, with him making a surprising/sensational exit at the end of this year, Russell has the opportunity of a lifetime to become the out-and-out leader on the team. Toto Wolff has publicly backed the young Brit several times to lead the team into the future.

Last year, George Russell did not have the best of campaigns in comparison to Lewis Hamilton. Despite his best efforts, he was only able to secure a disappointing eighth-place finish (175 points) in the standings in comparison to Hamilton’s third (234 points). Considering this, the upcoming campaign will be a fascinating watch from the point of view of the fans as well as Mercedes.