"There are many good drivers who merit a drive in Formula One, both young ones and more experienced ones, but at the moment cockpits...
"There are many good drivers who merit a drive in Formula One, both young ones and more experienced ones, but at the moment cockpits are a limited commodity," Wolff explained. "Both Esteban and George certainly deserve to be in Formula One; we are still working on options and will carefully decide what's best for them. If that means having to play the long game, then we will continue to prepare and develop them."
Russell has held talks with Williams about a drive for 2019 and is a strong candidate to replace Stroll when he moves to Force India. But such a deal is likely to hinge on a wider engine and gearbox agreement between Mercedes and Williams and the possible discount that will come with it. But if Russell does get the Williams seat, it would result in a scenario where Mercedes has no options left for Ocon.
However, Wolff said such a scenario would not mean Mercedes is allowing Russell to skip the queue ahead of Ocon and that the next step in the two drivers' careers look quite different.
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