Toto Wolff has dropped a big hint that the decision on who will partner Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes next year has already been made.

But the secret is being kept under wraps and even Valtteri Bottas and George Russell themselves may not know yet, let alone be in a position to declare anything publicly.

Mercedes must decide on which of the duo they want to partner Hamilton, who recently signed a two-year contract extension.

The smart money is on up-and-coming Mercedes junior driver Russell, who has been shining while ‘on loan’ at Williams – especially in qualifying, where he has started to make breaking into Q3 a habit with a car which is not as competitive when it comes to races.