'It makes you think’ - How Russell reacted to being booed by F1 fans

In an interview with Square Mile, the 25-year-old Briton revealed he was taken aback when he was jeered by fans on the driver’s parade before a race in 2022. 

Russell said he laughed off the boos but admitted the incident stuck with him for a while. 

“Last year, for the first time, I experienced some fans booing me on a driver’s parade,” he said. “I’d never experienced that before. 

“I’m a 24-year-old kid living his dream, just going out, working hard, trying to do his best, and you got these grown men booing you. I laughed it off, but it makes you think.” 

Russell acknowledged he hasn’t found it easy dealing with the increased spotlight that comes with being Lewis Hamilton's teammate, compared to when he made his F1 debut with backmarkers Williams. 

“The change in my professional life going from becoming an F1 driver, but one nearer the back of the grid, slightly out of the limelight, to one now who is slightly more at the front of the grid in the spotlight,” he explained. 

“The things you say are now being picked up more by the media and perhaps words may have been twisted or changed slightly, people’s perception of you changes as well, so it’s just learning how to deal with that change, because it’s not easy.”

Russell outlined the importance of having a support network of close friends he can reach out to. 

"I speak to my friends, my girlfriend’s incredibly supportive, but also my trainer, Aleix Casanovas,” he said. 

“I travel the world with Aleix, he’s been with me since 2017 now, so it’s our seventh year together, and he’s done every single race with me since that point. 

“Just having him there as somebody who understands the journey, understands the pressures, that’s incredibly important.”