Why Hamilton's record F1 title quest is "far from over" despite zero development plan
Why Hamilton's record F1 title quest is "far from over" despite zero development plan
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is adamant Lewis Hamilton's quest for a record-breaking eighth F1 title is "far from over" despite Red Bull taking a stranglehold on the championship.
Mercedes and Hamilton are under the kind of pressure they have not experienced before in the turbo-hybrid era following a run of four consecutive race defeats to Red Bull, with Max Verstappen claiming three of those victories.
The picture for the Silver Arrows took on an even gloomier nature post-Styrian Grand Prix when Wolff revealed all development on this year's W12 had stopped due to the team focusing its resources on the all-new 2022 car.
But asked whether the title race was effectively over this year given Red Bull's clear pace advantage, Wolff delivered a firm explanation as to why that was not the case.
“The championship is not only played with adding aerodynamic parts," insisted Wolff.
"At this stage, even a team like Red Bull who still keep adding parts, need to switch all of the development to next year.
"That means all the exploitation of the car, the set-up work, the tyres and optimisation of how we are running will become a very important part."
Bottas proves his worth to Mercedes
While the focus is on Hamilton and whether he can become F1's most successful driver in F1, in terms of the number of titles, team-mate Valtteri Bottas underlined his credentials to Wolff.
Starting from fifth on the grid following a three-place penalty after his spin in the pit lane during Friday practice, Bottas ended a run of three races without a podium by claiming third, finishing half-a-second ahead of a hard-charging Sergio Perez in his Red Bull.
Wolff is fully expecting Bottas to "be right in the mix at the front" for this weekend's Austrian Grand Prix.
"He drove for me a perfect first stint, managing his tyres whilst being fast," added Wolff.
"He was really in a perfect situation and you could see that without the penalty he would have been in the mix, no doubt about that.
“But having said that, Lewis and Valtteri had the same armoury and that wasn’t good enough to beat Max.”
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
Audi agree STAR driver contract as Mercedes driver tipped for new F1 seat THIS season - GPFans F1 Recap
- 2 hours ago
Ferrari show off new-look drivers following HUGE announcement
- 3 hours ago
McLaren leading fight for HUGE cash injection
- Yesterday 21:57
Newey set to announce STUNNING Red Bull departure
- Yesterday 17:57
Newey Red Bull exit wish CONFIRMED as F1 guru's reasons revealed
- Yesterday 20:57
F1 legend reveals 'FLOOD' of death threats after controversial decision
- Yesterday 19:57
Related news
Mercedes star tipped to replace struggling driver THIS season
Hamilton car camera captures Verstappen's TRUE feelings toward F1 rival
Marko reveals Vettel requirements for stunning F1 comeback
Fierce Hamilton F1 rival raises timing issue for Ferrari move
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