Rising British racer George Russell has joined Mercedes' junior driver programme ahead of the 2017 season, when he will race in the GP3 Series with ART Grand Prix.
Russell, 18, competed in the FIA European Formula 3 Championship last year, taking two victories en route to third place in the final standings. Russell becomes the third member of Mercedes' junior programme, alongside Formula 1 drivers Pascal Wehrlein and Esteban Ocon.
"It's great to be part of the Junior Programme. It is an incredible opportunity to have the backing of the Formula One World Champions," Russell said.
"I'm proud to have been given this kind of recognition for all the hard work that's gone into my career over the years so far.
"I've started doing some work with the team in the simulator and it's already become clear to me that I'm working with people who are the best in the business, who I know will help me develop as a driver and as a person.
"Of course, my priority is to get the job done over the coming season in GP3 and I'm fully focused on that. But this opportunity is a huge motivation and I'm looking forward to the challenge. It should be an exciting year ahead."
"George has shown impressive form in the junior categories and we've been keeping a close eye on him for a while now," Mercedes F1 chief Toto Wolff added.
"It's still early days in his career but we see great potential in him. For 2017, George will compete in the GP3 Series with ART Grand Prix on Formula One weekends, following in the footsteps of fellow Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport Junior Esteban Ocon and, of course, newly announced race driver Valtteri Bottas – both of whom won this championship en route to F1.
"George's next challenge in GP3 will provide a good test of his credentials for the future. We have already seen with Esteban how effective this series can be as a training ground and, of course, this is the championship which propelled Valtteri [Bottas] into Formula One, so we will follow George's progress with great interest."
