George Russell has acknowledged the changing atmosphere at Mercedes following Lewis Hamilton's departure to Ferrari. The 40-year-old agreed to leave the Silver Arrows last year, having struggled for consistency over the past few years.

Lewis is such a huge personality on and off the track but I think everyone within the team is very much excited for this next chapter really.”

Lewis Hamilton has swapped one super-quick teammate for another after leaving Mercedes to join Ferrari, where Charles Leclerc is renowned for his explosive qualifying pace

For the past two months all attention has focused on Lewis Hamilton’s grand entrance at Ferrari – now his old team is ready to talk about its own future

While Andrea Kimi Antonelli topped the first pre-season test session in Bahrain, George Russell is waiting for his moment to drive the car later on this afternoon. Beforehand, the Briton reflected on what does Lewis Hamilton leaving mean for Mercedes,