Mercedes has "best ally" in Toto Wolff for Red Bull political battle - Hamilton

Mercedes

Mercedes has "best ally" in Wolff for Red Bull political battle - Hamilton

Red Bull and Mercedes have entered a battle off-track over the poaching of engine staff

Ewan Gale

Friday 14 May 2021 18:13

Lewis Hamilton believes Mercedes has the "best ally" in team principal Toto Wolff to continue to prosper amid the off-track battle between the Silver Arrows and Red Bull.

With the seven-time F1 champion engaged in an intense fight on track with rival Max Verstappen, Red Bull and Mercedes have entered into a 'tug-of-war' over power unit staff with the poaching of engineers from Mercedes High Performance Powertrains.

Up to 15 personnel are believed to be switching allegiance, with 20-year Mercedes veteran Ben Hodgkinson the most high-profile name departing to date as he takes on the role of technical director of Red Bull Powertrains.

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Insisting he is not distracted by off-track affairs, Hamilton said: "It is not something I put any energy towards.

"There is, obviously, all this that is going on in the background. I think I have the best ally in Toto [Wolff] who will be working to manage it in the best way possible.

"Without a doubt, every individual in our team is amazing and it is not a surprise that everybody will want them.

"We have had a lot of success together. If there are people who have gone, I wish them all the best, we all have to go through our own journeys and make our own decisions which are right for us."

Mercedes has won every title available since the introduction of turbo-hybrid engines in 2014 with the powertrain the major factor in the early years of its domination.

Hamilton added: "This is a huge team. It is not about one individual or even five, it is about one collection and an amazing collection of people that remains solid and focused on winning this championship."