Mercedes refutes accusations of « favouritism » towards Russell
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff says that Lewis Hamilton has every right to be sceptical about any preferential treatment, but insists that he and George Russell are treated equally.
Lewis Hamilton expressed his doubts during the Monaco Grand Prix by suggesting that he would never be able to outperform George Russell in qualifying this season, and emphasized strongly, that his teammate had exclusive use of a new front wing for Monte-Carlo. Although it later emerged that Hamilton had refused the opportunity to use the wing because he did not want to risk starting from the pit lane in case of damage during qualifying.
Seven-time world champion’s comments about Russell’s potential advantage hinted at some concern about a possible inequality between them. This is a suggestion that Wolff claims to be unfounded. He explains that the only time, during Mercedes’ modern era in F1, when the team intervened to influence a battle between teammates was during the 2016 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. At that time, Hamilton had tried to slow down Nico Rosberg to push him back into the pack during their title fight and had been urged several times from the pit wall to speed up.
« Aren’t drivers all a little skeptical at times? I think that as a team, we have demonstrated, even in the most tense situations between teammates, that we always try to find the right balance, to be transparent and fair. I can understand that as a pilot, you want to bring out the best in yourself and the team, and sometimes, when it goes against you, you may have questions. But as a team, our mission is 100% to give both drivers two excellent cars, the best possible cars, and the best possible strategies and support.
»
Hamilton frustrated by Mercedes’ decisions in Monaco
Several times over the weekend, Hamilton questioned Mercedes’ actions. There was his message « I told you so » about the team’s tires, and then the miscommunication which meant he wasn’t pushing to the limit on his out lap after a tire change to overtake Max Verstappen.
Wolff said that the tensions within the system were part of everyone’s desire to give their best in difficult circumstances. « We are trying to make the most of the relationship and optimize the results for what is the last season. And as always between drivers, it can be tense at times because everyone wants to do their best. »
And although Russell has outqualified Hamilton seven times to one so far this year, Wolff did not see that as proof that things would stay that way for the whole season. “I don’t think there is a specific explanation for this statistic, but it’s still a statistic,” he said. “We are only seven races in and there are still 17 to go. I haven’t seen it as a trend.”
Hamilton and Russell will both have the new front wing from Mercedes for the next race in Canada as part of the upgrade effort that the German manufacturer is deploying.
