George Russell receives extra Mercedes boost after Pete Bonnington’s big promotion

George Russell has hailed the promotion of Lewis Hamilton’s race engineer Pete Bonnington as “great news” for Mercedes heading into the F1 2025 season.

Hamilton ‘s decision to join Ferrari on a multi-year contract from F1 2025 had sparked suggestions that key members of the Mercedes team, including long-serving engineer Bonnington, would follow the seven-time World Champion to Maranello.

George Russell reacts to Pete Bonnington’s new Mercedes role

However, PlanetF1.com revealed in the days after Hamilton’s switch to Ferrari was announced that his current contract contains a so-called “no-poaching” clause, which forbids Hamilton from having any direct involvement in persuading Mercedes staff to join him in Italy.

Mercedes confirmed on Wednesday that Bonnington has committed his future to the team and been promoted to the role of head of race engineering with immediate effect.

He will continue to work closely with Hamilton across the remainder of the F1 2024 season and is still expected to serve as race engineer to one of Mercedes’ drivers – most likely Andrea Kimi Antonelli, rumoured to be confirmed as Hamilton’s replacement within weeks – next season.

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Speaking to media including PlanetF1.com ahead of this weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort, Russell welcomed the news of Bonnington’s move to a broader role.

Bonnington was Russell’s race engineer for the 26-year-old’s Mercedes debut at the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix, where the then-Williams driver stood in for an unwell Hamilton.

Russell said: “Bono’s obviously been an integral part of the team’s success for so, so many years – and even before the Mercedes days, back at Brawn as well – and it’s great news that he’s staying on with us next year.

“Obviously, there were a lot of rumours and speculation about if he would go with Lewis, but I think there’s only a real benefit to me having that promotion for Bono.

“It’s almost having an extra set of eyes overlooking the work we’re doing and I think it’s only going to strengthen our squad even further.”

Hamilton is expected to inherit Carlos Sainz’s current race engineer, Riccardo Adami, when he arrives at Ferrari in F1 2025.

Adami previously worked with Sebastian Vettel during the four-time World Champion’s six-year stint at Ferrari between 2015 and 2020, with leading Italian F1 reporter Giuliano Duchessa revealing earlier this year that Hamilton had approached Vettel “some time ago” for an initial impression of the race engineer.

Russell feels Hamilton will need time to establish a bond with his new race engineer after his long and successful association with Bonnington, who has been the voice in the seven-time World Champion’s ear since Hamilton arrived at Mercedes in 2013.

He added: “I think relationships take time to build and trust and respect takes time to earn as well.

“With any change of job as such, when you’re working with new co-workers it does take time to learn.

“[Hamilton and Bonnington are] obviously extremely close after everything they’ve gone through.”

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