Toto Wolff (Mercedes) says he made “the right decision”
Toto Wolff insists that the decision not to stop Hamilton in the pits during the second start of the Hungarian Grand Prix was the right one. The British driver restarted the race all by himself.
This image will stay in people’s minds for a long time. Lewis Hamilton found himself alone on the grid during the second start of the Hungarian Grand Prix. While the other fourteen drivers behind him had returned to the pits to switch to slick tires, Mercedes ordered the world champion to stay on track. As a result, the British driver stopped at the end of the lap and came out at the back of the pack. The team probably did not anticipate that the track would quickly dry out with the return of the sun. However, Toto Wolff, the team principal, remains convinced that it was the best thing to do at that moment in the race.
To be honest, I think we absolutely did the right thing. All the other teams would have done the same. As the leading car, it’s always difficult to make a decision and if you’re the only ones to come in, you come back out last. And it’s always complicated to enter with everyone else when you’re in the first pit stop.
Lewis Hamilton should indeed have waited for the 15 other cars on the track to pass through the pits before exiting his spot. He could potentially have lost positions at that time.
Lewis Hamilton still finished second in this Grand Prix, after his spectacular comeback and Vettel’s disqualification. A choice assumed by the team boss.
« I fully accept it, even if it ultimately played against us. We could have entered and left far from the front runners and people would have said that we had made a mistake. »
