Lewis Hamilton and Toto Wolff are the most successful driver-team principal partnership in the history of Formula 1. Together, they won six drivers’ titles and eight constructors’ championships.
But in the final years of Hamilton’s stint at Mercedes, their relationship was put to the test. First, there was the 2021 season finale, where an error from FIA race director Michael Masi allowed Max Verstappen to snatch the title on the last lap.
Wolff criticised Red Bull for a lack of sportsmanship afterwards, but he had to be delicate in his handling of the situation. Mercedes decided not to appeal the Abu Dhabi result, because it would have meant winning the title in court, rather than on the track.
| CATEGORY | VOL. | RANK |
| Races | 246 | 1st |
| Championships | 6 | 1st |
| Race wins | 84 | 1st |
| Pole positions | 78 | 1st |
| Podiums | 153 | 1st |
They focused instead on exacting their revenge in 2022. But the ground-effect era has thus far featured a series of false dawns for the Silver Arrows.
Wolff’s squad haven’t build a car fast or predictable enough to challenge for the title. In fact, they’ve only won five Grands Prix in the last three seasons.
At the start of 2024, Hamilton took the bombshell decision to leave Mercedes. He’s instead placed his faith in Ferrari as he eyes a record eighth championship.
Lewis Hamilton wasn’t ‘surprised’ by what Toto Wolff said about Kimi Antonelli
Speaking last month, Wolff said he could never have axed Hamilton. Regardless of his performance levels, he didn’t want to be the one to let the ‘greatest champion ever go’.
He suspects, however, that Hamilton was wary of Kimi Antonelli’s rise. Mercedes see Antonelli as a superstar, which is why they’ve promoted him straight from F2 to the seat alongside George Russell.
Wolff said everything had ‘fallen into place’, with Hamilton’s exit facilitating Antonelli’s swift arrival. There would be no repeat of 2014, when he lost out on a teenage Verstappen because Red Bull offered a clearer path to the top.
Speaking on the formel1.de YouTube channel, Mercedes communications chief Bradley Lord shared Hamilton’s reaction to these remarks. He apparently understood that they were hypothetical, and always addressed any issues with his team boss in private.
“Lewis definitely didn’t read it, at most he saw the few lines that were taken a bit out of context on Instagram or somewhere,” Lord said.
“That wasn’t a tense topic. The two of them know each other far too well. They’ve had a set rule for years that if there is something, then ‘we will talk to each other directly’, not through the media.
“Basically I think these lines were no surprise for Lewis. They were hypothetical.”
Why Mercedes have now admitted to failing Lewis Hamilton
While Hamilton won two titles in his first four seasons at Mercedes, it was a tumultuous period. His relationship with teammate Nico Rosberg completely broke down as they fought for top spot.
Wolff ‘will never’ understand the dynamics between Hamilton and Rosberg, but he restored harmony to the garage by signing Valtteri Bottas in 2017. Bottas’ successor George Russell remained on good terms with Hamilton too, even after beating him in the standings twice.
Trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin admits Mercedes failed Hamilton from 2022. They knew he’d bring home pole positions and race wins in the right machinery, but they couldn’t provide it.
That will remain a source of regret for those involved. But having surpassed Ferrari and Michael Schumacher, the overriding emotion should be pride.
