Bottas knew 'you've just blown it' - Wolff
Bottas knew 'you've just blown it' - Wolff
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff believes Valtteri Bottas knew right away he had blown his chances of winning the Hungarian Grand Prix after he made early contact with Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, forcing him into an early pitstop.
The Finn was only a hundredth of a second away from taking pole position in qualifying, and started second on the grid. However, the collision with his team-mate and a Ferrari saw him have the worst possible start as his forced pit put him down to 20th.
He recovered to eighth, but Wolff says his driver knew right away his chances had gone.
“I'm really disappointed for him, because he was all pumped. Yesterday's qualifying performance was great - he could have easily been on pole,” the Austrian said after the race in Budapest.
“He wanted to do particularly well then it went all wrong. Touching with Lewis and touching with Leclerc, I there is nothing more to expect from anybody because you know, you've just blown it.”
The performance was another blow to Bottas’ chances of extending his deal with Mercedes to earn a seat next year, but Wolff refused to confirm or deny whether it would play a part in any decision, insisting talks will take place internally.
“I don't think we want to make it dependant from one bad day,” the Silver Arrows boss continued.
Hamilton: Lauda would have taken his hat off to Hungarian GP winRead more
“We need to look at all of the data, consider lots of factors which speak for him and speak against him.
“I don't want a discussion about if he's staying or not, it's not right. He has had some great inputs with the team and we want to discuss it behind closed doors.
“What's the merit of having a young one in the team? With all the risk and reward.
“What's the merit of having Valtteri in the team? With all the risk and reward.”
Bottas remains in second place in the drivers’ championship, with Max Verstappen closing the gap to 22 points from third.
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
Haas announce Hulkenberg EXIT as F1 star's new team confirmed
- 8 minutes ago
Red Bull to lose F1 MVP as true cost of Horner saga hits
- 1 hour ago
F1 pundit reveals the thing about Wolff that ANNOYS Horner
- 1 hour ago
Newey exit DATE revealed as Red Bull F1 chief set to leave
- 2 hours ago
F1 News Today: Red Bull star set to QUIT team as F1 legend reveals flood of death threats
- Today 06:27
Audi agree STAR driver contract as Mercedes driver tipped for new F1 seat THIS season - GPFans F1 Recap
- Yesterday 23:57
Related news
Manufacturer gives UPDATE on controversial Verstappen award saga
Rosberg opens up on CURSE after jinxing two more drivers
F1 star admits he 'could've stayed in hotel' in STUNNING Hungarian GP revelation
Schumacher claims Perez's Red Bull days 'are numbered'
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Oliver Bearman
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- Grand Prix du Canada 2024
- Gran Premio de España 2024
- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2024
- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2024
- Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2024
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
- Qatar Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2024
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860