Toto Wolff has rejected the idea that Mercedes' best F1 result in
seven races was simply down to the cold temperatures at the
Azerbaijan GP. The two-four result through George Russell and Kimi
Antonelli was Mercedes' best since it secured a one-three finish at
the Canadian GP in June, with the car performing better in colder
conditions over a number of years. The result was enough to move
Mercedes into second place in the constructors' championship,
overhauling Ferrari, with the gap now being four points, with a
resurgent Red Bull just 18 points behind the Brackley outfit. Wolff
previously went as far as to say that whenever he had to wear a
jumper, Mercedes would perform better, but the team has struggled
at times. Instead, the Austrian felt the result was more focused
around the track specifics, with Mercedes performing better in
slower, short corners as opposed to longer ones, such as Parabolica
at Monza, where the team took a five-nine finish. "I don't think
you can simplify like this," Wolff told media, including
RacingNews365 , when asked if the temperature was the key factor in
the result. "I've said that when I wear a pullover, we are there,
but there have been more difficult weekends in colder conditions.
"Now, obviously, the track layout suits our car. "There are no
lots of high speed, mid-to-high speeds long corners, which are not
our forte, so considering all the variables, it was certainly the
track which suited us a bit more." Wolff also addressed a move from
Antonelli and Russell on the safety car restart, with Russell being
forced to check up at Turn 1 as Antonelli defended his position and
dropped back. "Sometimes when you are close and next to each other,
these things can happen," Wolff told media, including
RacingNews365. "I think it was an okay situation; there wasn't any
ill intent from Kimi to push [George] out. "Kimi left the door
open a bit, but then George had to back out of it, just not to risk
a collision."
seven races was simply down to the cold temperatures at the
Azerbaijan GP. The two-four result through George Russell and Kimi
Antonelli was Mercedes' best since it secured a one-three finish at
the Canadian GP in June, with the car performing better in colder
conditions over a number of years. The result was enough to move
Mercedes into second place in the constructors' championship,
overhauling Ferrari, with the gap now being four points, with a
resurgent Red Bull just 18 points behind the Brackley outfit. Wolff
previously went as far as to say that whenever he had to wear a
jumper, Mercedes would perform better, but the team has struggled
at times. Instead, the Austrian felt the result was more focused
around the track specifics, with Mercedes performing better in
slower, short corners as opposed to longer ones, such as Parabolica
at Monza, where the team took a five-nine finish. "I don't think
you can simplify like this," Wolff told media, including
RacingNews365 , when asked if the temperature was the key factor in
the result. "I've said that when I wear a pullover, we are there,
but there have been more difficult weekends in colder conditions.
"Now, obviously, the track layout suits our car. "There are no
lots of high speed, mid-to-high speeds long corners, which are not
our forte, so considering all the variables, it was certainly the
track which suited us a bit more." Wolff also addressed a move from
Antonelli and Russell on the safety car restart, with Russell being
forced to check up at Turn 1 as Antonelli defended his position and
dropped back. "Sometimes when you are close and next to each other,
these things can happen," Wolff told media, including
RacingNews365. "I think it was an okay situation; there wasn't any
ill intent from Kimi to push [George] out. "Kimi left the door
open a bit, but then George had to back out of it, just not to risk
a collision."
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