Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff said the team’s point-less finish in the German Grand Prix showed the importance of ‘concentrating on the job’.
The team used its home race to celebrate 125 years of motorsport and ran with a retro-inspired livery and old-fashioned team kit. But a combination of crashes and strategy errors meant the team left the Hockenheimring without adding to its championship tally.“It shows that you shouldn’t fool around with stuff,” Wolff told Sky. “You should concentrate on the job. We are not superstitious but we believe in karma. It’s a day to learn.”
Wolff said the team “had a decent start of the race with good pace”. Lewis Hamilton led from the start and Valtteri Bottas was still holding second place 26 laps in.
“Then obviously you add incidents, crashing out in tricky conditions, the wrong calls and this is where it all started to go wrong,” he said.
Hamilton’s race went awry when he crashed during a Safety Car period. He came into the pits, collecting a penalty for not following the entrance correctly, but discovered the team was not ready for him.
“It was unfortunate because crashing right at the entry of the pit lane, obviously you’re not prepared,” said Wolff. “And then we made the wrong calls also afterwards. It was all coming together.”
While Hamilton finished out of the points, Bottas crashed out of fourth place with less than 10 laps to go.
“Many others made a mistake,” Wolff reflected. “Leclerc crashed, many others crashed. Overall it was for us a bad day, it was for the drivers a bad day. It simply cannot go much worse.”
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hahostolze (@hahostolze)
28th July 2019, 16:52
Toto Wolff, saying that Hamilton crashed, there…
Tom
28th July 2019, 17:10
Pathetic that a headline means that much to you. See a shrink.
hahostolze (@hahostolze)
28th July 2019, 17:17
Describe your experience, is it helpful?
Yaru
28th July 2019, 16:55
“We are not superstitious but we believe in karma.”
Pretty sure that’s a contradictory statement right there.
Feuerdrache (@xenomorph91)
28th July 2019, 17:49
Pretty sure he said the opposite at Sky: “We are not superstitious or believe in karma”.
maiagus
28th July 2019, 18:43
I don’t believe in horoscope; but this was expected from a Capricornian like myself.
GtisBetter (@)
28th July 2019, 17:03
“No more fun, ever!” – Toto Wolff
David BR (@david-br)
28th July 2019, 19:34
@passingisoverrated :)
That made me laugh. I expect that memo to be sent round tonight, latest.
And yes, it was karma, or known by its more religious name, sod’s law. If you’re going to dress up daft on your serious day job when results are stlll expected, it’s bound to be the day everything goes pear shaped and you look extra daft.
Sensord4notbeingafanboi (@peartree)
28th July 2019, 17:05
I noted that their fp3 pace was a result of them were playing around with something, Sky caught it on the pitlane. I guess they ended up trying to overdo things, I would guess playing with setup for Sunday, this race was boring, totally under control on inters but when things got into that wet dry limbo, mercedes were poor on dry tyres on a damp track.
Phylyp (@phylyp)
28th July 2019, 17:06
I don’t know who the guy in black is, but I want to give him a good meal, a razor, and a hug to cheer him up, in that order.
Dewald Nel (@ho3n3r)
28th July 2019, 17:29
Why, what’s wrong?
Phylyp (@phylyp)
28th July 2019, 17:49
He looks downright dejected :)
Nulla Pax (@nullapax)
28th July 2019, 17:52
@phylyp
“Just a Dollar feller – just a dollar to get some grits an a cuppa coffee. You got a nice tie Mr, I aint got nuttin … Nuttin!”
Phylyp (@phylyp)
28th July 2019, 17:56
@nullapax – you win the caption competition. So was it the rum or the wine that aided your eloquence? :)
Nulla Pax (@nullapax)
28th July 2019, 18:01
@phylyp I didn’t reach the wine.
The race was all the fuel I needed this afternoon :)
I should apply for a job in advertising really with crap like that coming out of my head ;P
Phylyp (@phylyp)
28th July 2019, 18:09
@nullapax – just don’t call it crap at the interview, they might view that dimly ;)
Phylyp (@phylyp)
28th July 2019, 17:15
That blond bespectacled gent standing behind Toto’s shoulder (in the garage) was Ola Kallenius, wasn’t it? Not a good day for the boss to be visiting.
Bob
28th July 2019, 17:24
I think Wolff was against the costumes and that is coming out.
Mercedes wanted a PR event at their home Grand Prix, pleasing the sponsors (owners) is a part of F1
Mercedes is a large team the retro livery and costumes would not have slowed the team or diverted focus. It was just a rally bad race for Mercedes.
Nothing to do with karma.
David (@davidjwest)
28th July 2019, 17:29
When was the last time Hamilton crashed during a race?
Neil (@neilosjames)
28th July 2019, 17:30
Nothing to do with the costumes, or ‘fooling around’… it was just a chaotic race. Hamilton made a few errors, the team made a few errors, Bottas made one race-ending error.
Can’t blame mistakes on silly hats.
Nulla Pax (@nullapax)
28th July 2019, 17:32
Ban all dressing up and celebrating the past.
Let’s have none of this nonsense about heritage and stuff.
If we need a Philip Marlow lookalike we can pay Mr G Steiner to do the job … he is good at swearing as well!
We lost today – I blame this hat!
Lauri (@f1lauri)
28th July 2019, 17:56
Did Netflix “Drive to Survive” just now start recording material? Might the comment be about that also or just the anniversary/outfit?
hamiledon
28th July 2019, 18:13
All the costumes were indeed buffoonery.
TeoLinuX
28th July 2019, 22:15
Yep
Payne Hertz
28th July 2019, 18:19
Best response would be “Well, that didn’t work! See you in Hungary.”
Michael (@freelittlebirds)
28th July 2019, 18:31
Seeing Mercedes come undone at the pits when Lewis brought the car in with damage goes to show you that even a team like Mercedes is not perfect and can improve. This is good for them – it’ll keep them on their toes.
Pat
28th July 2019, 18:57
Better for Mercedes to make 10 mistakes in one race then make 1 mistake in 10
consecutive races like some other teams do
RocketTankski
28th July 2019, 21:38
Should have gone for slick lederhosen?
Nulla Pax (@nullapax)
28th July 2019, 22:51
Slick Lederhosen?
Oh I like the sound of that.
Is it tight and shiny with pockets for extra additions?
I need to go away and think about this for a while!
NewVerstappenFan (@jureo)
28th July 2019, 22:39
No problem. They failed in all the right ways.
Bottas crashed chasing P2, Hamilton was fighting for the win when he crashed. Hamilton had a moment same place as Bottas.
In those conditions who could blame them?
Strategy errors were not like the usual Ferrari like blunders. They were what appered to be the best options at the time.
Their outfits were pure victory atleast.
David BR (@david-br)
28th July 2019, 23:41
Well, bad race indeed, but Hamilton got two points, right?
Sonny Crockett
29th July 2019, 9:18
If anything the weekend’s events have made Mercedes more appealing to me.
At last they appear “human”.
JMDan (@danmar)
30th July 2019, 13:17
“We are not superstitious but we believe in karma. It’s a day to learn.” Who is/are this/those ‘we’? He doesn’t look like the Queen of England!