What can a Formula 1 driver learn from a tennis icon? According to George Russell, quite a lot. The Mercedes driver reveals what he has learned from multiple Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic. The wisdom of the 38-year-old tennis player motivates Russell to continue working towards his dream of becoming a world champion in the coming years.
With 24 Grand Slam titles to his name and the record for the most weeks at number one in the tennis rankings – 428 weeks – Novak Djokovic is an absolute phenomenon in the tennis world. George Russell had a conversation with the 38-year-old Serbian, and reveals to the Untapped podcast what he has learned from the tennis champion.
“I had a very good conversation with Novak Djokovic about human performance and what he is currently doing, but also about what he did when he was twenty,” begins the 27-year-old Russell. “He told me that in his twenties he felt he could easily skip a day at the gym without it affecting him. But he didn’t, and he is now very grateful for that. He believes that the work he did in those years now enables him to continue playing at such a high level well into his thirties.”
Alonso and Schumacher
Although tennis is very different from motor racing, Russell still draws lessons from Djokovic’s wisdom. “I want to stay in Formula 1 well into my forties and seeing what Alonso is doing gives me inspiration that I can do that too,” says the Mercedes driver, who sees not only the Spaniard as his great example in this. “Schumacher won his first championship with Ferrari in his thirties. That’s what I remind myself of to stay motivated. We don’t have the fastest car yet, but maybe next year. Or in five or ten years.”
