Wolff slams Mercedes preparation: 'We shouldn't fool around'

A noticeably angry Toto Wolff criticised the nature of Mercedes' preparations for the German Grand Prix, as both cars struggled badly at the Hockenheimring.

Mercedes had been vociferously celebrating a 125th anniversary, which saw members of the pit team dressing up in old outfits and a special livery assigned for the weekend.

But it turned into a disaster as Lewis Hamilton spun into the wall and needed a front wing change, ultimately finishing out of the points, while Valtteri Bottas spun out close to the end as he tried to get past Lance Stroll.

Wolff pulled no punches in his assessment of the result, telling Sky Sports F1: "I think we had a decent start with good pace. Then you had incidents, crashing out in tricky conditions, the wrong calls.

"[On Lewis Hamilton]It was unfortunate, crashing right at the entry of the pit lane, you are not prepared. We made the wrong calls afterwards, it was all coming together.

"Many drivers crashed. Overall for us it was a bad day, for the drivers it was a bad day, it cannot go much worse.

"This shows that you shouldn't fool around with stuff. You should concentrate on the job. We are not superstitious but we believe in karma and it's a day to learn."

Max Verstappen's victory gives him a window of opportunity in the world championship race, closing the gap at the top to the two Mercedes cars.

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