Toto Wolff – Valtteri Bottas “in control of his destiny” after winter wind-up - Toto Wolff

Valtteri Bottas tijdens kwalificatie in Frankrijk. — Photo: © LAT Images

French Grand Prix

Bottas “in control of his destiny” after winter wind-up - Wolff

Mercedes driver must race fast to retain seat in 2022

Will Gray & Sam Hall

Saturday 19 June 2021 21:30

Toto Wolff revealed he had a “good discussion” with Valtteri Bottas after his dismal performance at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix but conceded comments of a 'winter-decision' on the Finn's future were a wind-up.

Even before the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, questions had been raised over the potential of a mid-season swap between Bottas and WIlliams' George Russell.

These questions were batted away by Wolff and asked to clarify the driver's situation after qualifying third in France, just a tenth behind Hamilton, Wolff said: "We had a good discussion last week and he knows that it’s all in his hands, and that’s good news, because he’s in control of his destiny and it’s only about driving this car fast."

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On Friday, Wolff commented that the team may not make a final decision on its 2022 line-up until the winter.

After enduring a winter negotiation with Lewis Hamilton ahead of the current season, the team principal had vowed not to allow a similar situation to develop again and confirmed his comments had simply been made in jest.

"It was a wind-up because you get asked this question so often," he added. "So what is the delay?

"Two drivers for one seat. Two drivers that still can have a great career in Formula 1 and I just want to see Valtteri's full potential this year and continue to observe Geroge in driving for Williams and handling their situation."

Advantage Red Bull?

Mercedes has won the last two races in France in 2018 and 2019, with the race missed last year due to the coronavirus pandemic, but this time it was Red Bull at the front with Max Verstappen securing a confident pole.

Mercedes’ rival is currently leading the championship and is also expected to be strong in the race, with an updated Honda engine and a smaller rear wing that produces less drag giving the car a performance advantage.

Wolff added: “The new Honda engine will have some more horsepower, I guess, which is pretty normal if you put a new engine into the pool. On the other side, they run a much less draggy rear wing than us.

“In absolute lap time, [that] is good for them but for us it wouldn’t have functions because even with the lesser downforce rear wing they were still able to do the sector times in sector three.”