Toto Wolff defends ‘best driver of all time’ Lewis Hamilton from criticism over winless streak

Lewis Hamilton ad George Russell have recently signed a multi-year contract extension with Mercedes.

Toto Wolff defends ‘best driver of all time’ Lewis Hamilton from criticism over winless streak

Lewis Hamilton and Toto Wolff (Via IMAGO)

Lewis Hamilton has been one of the biggest stars of Formula 1 for the last 16 years. He has proved time and again that he is worthy of all the records that he keeps breaking and the new ones he’s setting. He has won seven world titles and 103 races, driving for Mercedes and McLaren. But since the conclusion of the 2021 season, Hamilton hasn’t won a race and has never been close to winning one.

Amidst the victory drought, criticism started coming in from all angles over the supposed lack of hunger and determination from Hamilton to fight for race wins and titles. This criticism didn’t end when he signed a two-year contract extension with the team. Now Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has come to the defense of Hamilton.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ueOEo76f-j8

In a recent interview with Square Mile, Wolff broke his silence over the verbal attacks on Hamilton. He insists that criticism is invalid and that he will protect his driver. Wolff said, as reported by GPBlog.com, “I need to protect him because people have started to hit out at him, which is not right. It’s complete nonsense: he’s the greatest driver of all time.”

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The victory drought has made fans overlook the impressive results he is producing with a comparatively slow W14 this year. He has outperformed his teammates in most races despite having poor qualifying sessions and is the only driver other than Max Verstappen to score top-10 finishes in every race so far this season. He still has a realistic shot at securing the championship P2 over Sergio Perez and helping Mercedes to finish second in the constructor’s title battle.

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Lewis Hamilton has consistently outperformed George Russell in 2023

This year was nothing special for the Mercedes, as they were short of more than double points to Red Bull. Although Mercedes came out on top in the 2nd position and continually fought to hold that position, that is impressive. The British drivers racing for the team proved to be a great asset.

Lewis Hamilton and George Russell (Via IMAGO)
Lewis Hamilton and George Russell (Via IMAGO)

George Russell, even though he is performing very well for the experience that he shares as compared to his teammate Hamilton. Hamilton is currently holding 3rd with 190 points in the drivers’ standings, while Russell is down at 8th with just 115, which makes the difference in points to be 75.

Driving the same machinery and Mercedes trying new upgrades on the W14, Hamilton shows that he can adapt to changes and race in different conditions. This has put extra pressure on Russell, and sometimes, it has made him commit mistakes that usually don’t happen.