With Hamilton Out, a Surprise Favorite to Win F1 Sakhir Grand Prix Emerges

From Autoweek

• George Russell moves from Williams to Mercedes this week while F1 champion Lewis Hamilton recovers from his positive COVID-19 test.

• Russell is 21st in the F1 Drivers' Standings with zero points in 2021.

• Hamilton's status for the season-ending race in Abu Dhabi on Dec. 13 has yet to be determined.

With Lewis Hamilton out of this weekend's F1 Sahkir Grand Prix in Bahrain following a positive COVID-19 test on Monday, Formula 1 has an interesting story line building.

Just ask Renault driver Daniel Ricciardo.

"Anyone can win now," Ricciardo said. "It's all open."

Wow. An F1 race where more then one driver, more than one team can win? What a novel, and potentially super-entertaining idea. At least, as Ricciardo points out, there's not anything like a championship hanging in the balance. Hamilton and Mercedes have long since put the F1 Drivers' and Constructors' Championships in the rear-view mirrors.

This week, it's Williams' driver George Russell moving into Hamilton's seat. Russell's move to Mercedes opened up the Williams seat for Formula 2 driver Jack Aitken. In an unrelated move that adds to the intrigue of what's turned into a potentially wild race day on Sunday, Haas reserve driver Pietro Fittipaldi is in the Haas F1 ride this week in place of injured Romain Grosjean.

Only one thing is for certain. Hamilton won't be winning his sixth race in a row or his 11th race of the season this weekend in Bahrain.

"Obviously, it would be the worst way in the world to lose a championship because of this," Ricciardo said. "I think 2020 has been weird enough, so I think that's the glass half-full approach, or mindset, is that he has it wrapped up.

"As long as he hopefully has mild symptoms and it's nothing serious, then I think (Hamilton) can be relatively OK sitting this one out. I think for the others, I think the whole grid is shaken up and George (Russell) has the opportunity to obviously have that seat and to have a go. One door closes and another opens for some."

And not just any door just opened for Russell. When Russell got the call from Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff on Tuesday saying that Mercedes and Williams had cut a deal to put Russell into the Mercedes this week, it moved Williams from the last spot in the drivers standings—no top 10s, zero points scored this season—into the top ride in all of racing.

That puts Russell from backmarker to pacesetter overnight in the minds of some of his rivals.