Toto Wolff breaks silence on Lewis Hamilton’s claim of staying behind George Russell in Qualifying in 2024

Lewis Hamilton previously hinted that George Russell would have the upper hand in Qualifying this season.

Toto Wolff breaks silence on Lewis Hamilton’s claim of staying behind George Russell in Qualifying in 2024

Toto Wolff(L), George Russell(in circle), Lewis Hamilton (R) via IMAGO

Intra-team battles have been fairly competitive this season as multiple teams have pairings that have pushed their drivers on the edge to beat one another. However, the Silver War in Mercedes has been fairly one-sided as George Russell has beaten Lewis Hamilton 7-1 in the qualifying battle so far and claimed that his younger teammate was given preference. Witnessing this, Toto Wolff has reflected on the situation ensuing within the team and given his perspective on it.

Entering the 2024 season, every fan expected that Lewis Hamilton would whitewash George Russell throughout the season amid his strong momentum from 2023. However, to his dismay, the young Brit emerged as the team leader within the Brackley-based squad. This disparity in performance resulted in the team giving Russell the whole upgrade package in Monaco.

YouTube video

Subsequently, this resulted in Hamilton lashing out at the team by claiming to have been thrown under the bus and lamented the race to have been the worst one of his career. Hamilton even claimed that he didn’t expect to defeat his teammate in Qualifying this year. Reacting to such allegations, Toto Wolff calmed the situation down and admitted that the 39-year-old’s anger-charged claims were justified. However, the team was focused on maximizing the points scored within a weekend and had to make the hard decision.

FS Video
All drivers [are] a bit sceptical at times. I think as a team, we’ve demonstrated that even in the most tense competitions between team mates, we are trying to always balance it right and be transparent and fair... As a team we are 100 per cent on a mission of giving the two drivers two great cars, the best possible cars, and the best possible strategies and support.
Toto Wolff said in an interview with F1

Toto Wolff justifies Mercedes’ rough patch by taking a dig at Ferrari’s slump in recent years

On the other hand, the German marque fought its last championship battle in 2021. Moreover, the team has been struggling ever since the introduction of the ground-effect regulations in 2022. Now, to justify this slump in performance, the Austrian used the example of Ferrari to lessen the pressure on the team.

Mercedes's Toto Wolff
Toto Wolff (via IMAGO)

The 52-year-old elaborated that the team has a successful history behind it. Regardless of the plight they are in right now, they have been fairly competitive when compared to their rivals, as in comparison to the prancing horses, the Italian team has been unable to win a championship in the past 16 years. On the contrary, the Silver Arrows have only been away from the top for a matter of few years.

We have finished first 115 times and have been beaten in the last 50 races. This is not where we want to be and the feeling we are experiencing is horrible. Ferrari hasn't won a constructors' championship since 2008. Red Bull failed to do so for eight years in a row because we were the ones who won. We have to put things in perspective: it's the third year we haven't won, it's not eight and it's not 16.
Toto Wolff said in an interview with PA

Despite Wolff justifying Mercedes‘ weak performance in the past few campaigns, the German manufacturer has a serious problem to overcome. Thus, engineers in Brackley would be working day and night to solve the issue with the W15 to make its future alterations more competitive.

In case you missed it: