“It’s Much Too Early”: Toto Wolff Cannot Rule Out Valtteri Bottas Being Sacrificed

“It’s Much Too Early”: Toto Wolff Cannot Rule Out Valtteri Bottas Being Sacrificed

Toto Wolff and Valtteri Bottas

It is not an unknown case in the Formula 1 that the second drivers have been sacrificed while the team favors one driver to top the Driver’s Championship. It seems like Valtteri Bottas would not be able to challenge Lewis Hamilton for yet another season after trailing by 60 points in the respective standing. Having expressed displeasure at his race management by the team already this term, Bottas would surely not take kindly to subservient duties in favour of Hamilton for a large part of the campaign. When a sked upon the same to Toto Wolff, he surely had just a few words to enlighten this topic as well. 

The title fight looks very much a two-horse race even at this early stage with the other Mercedes and Red Bull drivers, Bottas and Sergio Perez respectively, reduced to back-up roles with their main focus likely to be on helping their teams in the Constructors’ battle. Wolff, is not discounting that prospect but is also wary of how it would impact on the German manufacturer’s public image. 

What did Toto Wolff Say About Valtteri Bottas? 

Toto Wolff on Valtteri Bottas
Toto Wolff and Valtteri Bottas

“No, I think it’s much too early,” Wolff told Sky F1 when asked if a driver (essentially Valtteri Bottas) could be sacrificed in the title fight. 

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“We are there to race, Mercedes is a group of racers and we have never sacrificed drivers that early in the season. If we see that one is almost out of contention for a Drivers’ World Championship, we may revert to that – but I don’t think it reflects well on Mercedes or the racing team.” 

Toto Wolff

But ahead of the first of two races in Austria, he denied his relationship with the team has been damaged by his Paul Ricard outburst. 

“I can be very direct on that. That perception is completely false,” Bottas told reporters. “I have a good relationship with the team and there are no issues. Those kinds of situations, they are normal. I’m sure not all the things have been broadcast in the past, and what has brought us this far as a team has always been being direct and always being honest on your feelings, and if you feel there is a place for improvement.” 

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