Rosberg: 'Russell's arrival will make for fiercer battle at Mercedes'

Speaking to Motorsport.com, the German says the duo will cause fireworks at Mercedes. "Yes, if they take George, then the fight internally at Mercedes would be different, and possibly more heated."

"If he (Russell) were to drive alongside Lewis one day, it's impossible to predict how he would behave in such a situation," Rosberg continued. "It's extreme, it's completely extreme, suddenly you're in a race winning car every weekend, you're fighting the best of all time, who's been there for like the last eight years. It's an extreme situation. So it really depends from one driver to another who you would deal with that as a teammate."

Bottas and Russell both earn seats

At least that's how Rosberg looks at it. "Whether it's Valtteri or George, they both deserve that seat. Valtteri has done really well in that Mercedes car. Of course things have not gone his way this year, but overall he has done the job Mercedes requires. Let's see what they decide. Valtteri would be the easier decision, because you know what you have. George might be the slightly more exciting decision. Let's see what they come up with."

When the official announcement will be remains to be seen. Still, just about everyone is now assuming that Russell will get the seat next to Hamilton as the other seats are already being filled. In short: the final decision doesn't seem to be too far away.