George Russell has revealed he's received 'texts and phone calls' from drivers interested in replacing Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes.
Hamilton revealed he'd be leaving the Silver Arrows for Ferrari at the start of the month, rocking the world of Formula One in the process.
Russell has spent the last couple of years racing alongside Hamilton and is now widely expected to become Mercedes' No 1 driver.
It is currently unclear who will replace Hamilton, however, with Mercedes still considering their options.
George Russell says he's been inundated with texts and phone calls after news of Lewis Hamilton's move to Ferrari
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And Russell, per F1i.com, has revealed he's received messages from other F1 drivers about potentially becoming his team-mate.
"We've already had conversations and I've been with Toto a lot this winter, so seeing the drivers' names pop up on the telephone has been quite funny,” he said.
"Even on my phone as well, I've had a few phone calls and text messages so it's been quite interesting."
Some fear for Mercedes' future without Hamilton given everything he's achieved throughout his spell with the Brackley-based team.
Even though he's failed to win a race over the past two years, he believes the F1 side can cope without the 39-year-old in their ranks.
“As a team, we've got a good opportunity and we're in a really good position to go into this next chapter," added the 26-year-old.
"There's been so much success with Lewis and Mercedes."
And Russell insists it's business as usual at Mercedes, insisting the team are united and committed as they look to end Red Bull's dominance of the sport.
"So far it [team dynamic] hasn't changed at all. I think everybody is professional, we've all got our job at hand," said Russell.
"The engineers are just motivated to try to deliver the fastest car possible and Lewis is still motivated to do the best job possible.
"So within the team, it seems like nothing has changed."
Mercedes chief Toto Wolff, meanwhile, has been asked if Hamilton should have looked closely at their W15 car before announcing his departure.
And the Austrian replied by saying: “I think he’s taken his decision over the winter to join Ferrari and there’s benefits of keeping it to yourself and then deciding maybe at a later stage.
"But then also if you have set your mind and you are sailing, that’s ok.
"[I] can’t say [if the W15 is a potential race or championship winner].
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“We know we have a big mountain to climb.
"When you have a car out of the blocks like Red Bull have with these new regulations, catching them up is very, very difficult.
"We can’t really see yet a picture of performance.”
As for Hamilton, the Briton recently insisted that he was 'the most motivated and focused' he's ever been as he sets his sights on a historic eighth F1 title.
“I feel the most motivated and focused I’ve ever been," he said.
George Russell and Lewis Hamilton will be hoping for a successful year with Mercedes after struggling last term
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"Every year you come back and you are like ‘I’m fitter than ever’ and all these different things.
“But I generally feel I put more work and more time and more focus into preparation this year. I never thought at this point in my life I’d have hunger like I do right now.
“To finish on a high with the team would be a dream. We’ve gone through a whole heap together, so to finish on a high, it would be the greatest honour to help them get back to the top.”
