Former F1 Champion Damon Hill Predicts 'Dark Horse' To Win 2026 Championship

The 2025 Drivers' Championship fight saw an intense battle that went all the way down to the final race in Abu Dhabi between the McLarens of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and the Red Bull of Max Verstappen.

It was Norris who claimed his first ever championship at the Yas Marina Bay, in a race that saw victory for Max Verstappen ultimately cancelled out by Norris finishing third, enough to come home champion with a lead of two points in the standings.

With a new season around the corner comes a new opportunity for a driver to win silverware, and a certain Formula One legend has a currently unheralded suggestion.

Damon Hill and Johnny Herbert think George Russell will be F1 champion in 2026

George Russell has been with Mercedes since 2022, and has won five races with the team. | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

In his podcast Stay On Track alongside fellow F1 stalwart Johnny Herbert, Damon Hill spent most of the most recent episode theorizing about what viewers might see unfold over the course of the 2026 season.

Amongst the topics included were a confession that Cadillac might be able to spring a surprise, as well as a shock confession that he thinks Mercedes' number one driver, George Russell, will become the world champion, a prediction that both hosts shared.

"I'll tell you what, I'm going to go [with] George [Russell as my prediction] - George has done a brilliant job for [Mercedes and] I'm sure they're going to be at the sharp end, fighting for race wins and potentially the championship.
Johnny Herbert on his prediction

"I think the dark horse here is Russell, who [has] performed brilliantly, consistently all year [in 2025] in a car that was not a regular winner.”
Damon Hill on George Russell

Russell had a brilliant 2025, finishing fourth in the championship standings with 319 points, with nine podiums and two wins to his name, in Canada and Singapore.

The two F1 veterans' prediction for Russell to win his first championship is not totally unfounded, as most expert opinions seem to indicate that the Mercedes car for next season is particularly strong, with even Max Verstappen confessing how good the German manufacturer looked.

Max Verstappen might have come agonizingly close to winning the 2025 championship, but even he is scared of Mercedes in 2026. | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

It is, however, entirely unknown how 2026 will unfold for Mercedes, but Russell's consistent outperforming of talented rookie teammate Kimi Antonelli, who had just over half of Russell's total points haul with 150 points in 2025, indicates that he should end up being the main man for what might be the best constructor on the grid.

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