Toto Wolff to “discuss” Mercedes team orders incident with Valtteri Bottas

Mercedes

Wolff to “discuss” Mercedes team orders incident with Bottas

Mercedes driver did not make it easy for team-mate Hamilton to pass

Ian Parkes & Will Gray

Monday 10 May 2021 08:00

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Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is to hold a 'discussion' with Valtteri Bottas about his failure to make it easy for Lewis Hamilton to pass after being told to do so over the radio during the Spanish Grand Prix.

Bottas was asked to avoid holding Hamilton up as the reigning champion fought to close in on leader Max Verstappen after being fitted with a newer set of tyres.

Bottas reluctantly did so and explained after the race he “could have let him by earlier” but chose not to because he was focused on his own race, adding: “I’m not here to let people by.”

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Wolff saw it differently and said: “Racing drivers, their instincts are what they are. We would have wished that maybe because Lewis was on a totally different strategy, he would have come through faster, but in the end, we scored the result.

“I can relate to Valtteri that he had a tough day again and you’re annoyed. If it would have lost us the race I would be more critical but in the end, this is something we can learn off."

Bottas was not trying to fight Hamilton for position but instead trying to build a gap to fourth-placed Charles Leclerc.

Wolff added: “It goes both directions, and this is what we will be discussing but in a very camaraderie sort of way.”

Asked about Bottas’ mental state after another race in which he struggled to get the best from his car while his team-mate was victorious, Wolff insists he has no worries about the Finn.

“In the mental state I would say he is very strong and he is in a good place, he keeps scoring," said Wolff. "In qualifying, it was three drivers within the tenths, the weekend before he was on pole, so his speed is enormous.

“It’s just when things go wrong at the start, or you’re in a gaggle of cars and you lose time to the leaders, that’s basically a KO.

“Behind Charles, I don’t know how much he lost, he will know better, 20 seconds or so, and then obviously it’s where you are, you’re third on the road at best.”