Lewis Hamilton names racer he wants to see become F1 champion; 'Just how he drives...'

As Lewis Hamilton continues to chase history this year by potentially winning a record eighth F1 Drivers' Championship, he also seems to be pondering about goals beyond individual success.

The Mercedes F1 driver revealed in a recent interview that he hopes he can help next year's teammate George Russell to become a world champion at some point. The 36-year old Brit is keen on helping his younger compatriot learn the team dynamics and guide him to future success.

Lewis Hamilton wants George Russell to become the next F1 champion

While speaking to Motorsport.com and some other motorsport media outlets, Lewis Hamilton said, "I'm in a different place. I really want to see him succeed. There's going to be a point where I don't continue in this sport. He's my teammate, and he's going to be the next Brit that I want to see win a world championship."

However, Hamilton insisted that while he was keen on helping George Russell improve, he still wanted to remain competitive and 'win on the track.' "So I really hope that, while we are going to be competing and I want to win on the track, I hope I can have a positive influence on how he conducts himself within the team. Whether it's the time he commits to engineering, or how he churns through the data, or even just how he drives on track," added the Mercedes F1 driver.

Lewis Hamilton expects Russell to provide him with a good fight

Lewis Hamilton expects George Russell to join Mercedes F1 next season with a similar mentality to how he pursued the challenge at McLaren F1 in 2007 with two-time Drivers' Champion Fernando Alonso. The 36-year old said, "He's going to want to be quick. He's going to want to show up and win and do all those things that you do when you enter a new role. I remember when I went up against [Fernando] Alonso, of course, I wanted to beat him at the first race. So I appreciate and expect George to have that mentality. Otherwise, he’s not a winner, you know? I anticipate he will have that mentality."

The two drivers will next be seen in action at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix this weekend, where Hamilton will resume his title challenge with Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen. The Dutchman currently leads the Brit by eight points in the championship, with just two races remaining in the season.