Lewis Hamilton had a horrible end to his eight championship title quest as he was left devastated during the final race of the 2021 season in Abu Dhabi. The Mercedes driver has not been able to win a single race this season. And his highest finish has been a third during the first race in Bahrain. One of the major reasons behind Hamilton falling behind in the field is due to the limitations of the Mercedes new generation car. The W13s struggled with the proposition, causing instability and lack of performance. Hence, the Silver Arrows have failed to compete with the frontrunners Red Bull and Ferrari so far.
Meanwhile, George Russell is having an excellent rookie season in a troubled Mercedes camp. The younger Briton has finished ahead of Lewis Hamilton in seven out of eight races so far. He has managed to finish in the top 5 and clinch three podiums. And Russell is currently stationed fourth in the drivers’ rankings with 99 points.
At the same time, Hamilton has secured 66 points in 2022 as the Briton was unlucky on several occasions. Many experts have reckoned that Lewis’ career is coming to a close. They think there has been a drop in his performance after the nightmare race in Abu Dhabi last year. However, the Mercedes team principal has stated that Lewis Hamilton has not declined in the slightest between dominating the third half in 2021 and the present times.
Wolff Denies Claims Of Russell Showing Hamilton The Way Around
After the Azerbaijan GP, Wolff was asked if Hamilton was losing confidence with continuous disappointments. Wolf replied that he did not think it was like that as Hamilton is the best there has ever been. Further, Toto shared that Hamilton has not lost his ability between the Abu Dhabi loss and domination in the last third of 2021 to four months later.
Talking about the variation in Russell and Hamilton’s performance, Wolff pointed out that the duo has taken different alternatives to try and solve the issue with the W13 sooner. Moreover, the Mercedes boss clarified that there had been no point where Russell had a consistent edge over Lewis Hamilton. Wolff mentioned Hamilton’s comeback in Barcelona and finishing P5 after suffering from a first-lap puncture. Thus, Toto is sure of Hamilton’s potential. He shared that both Mercedes drivers are professionals who have sub-par cars. Both of them are trying to develop the car with different strategies. He added, “Lewis in Azerbaijan GP qualifying again very experimental, but can be available in the long form.”
Wolff thinks that the difference between the two drivers is small. The car is still not good enough to compete at the front. Thus, the former Austrian racer does not think there has been a pattern where George has constantly outperformed Lewis Hamilton or the other way around. Wolff mentioned how good Lewis was in Barcelona, and he was a genius on the track, as his reputation suggests. Toto said, “So I think what I enjoy is them working together and trying to bring the car back to the front.”