Toto Wolff: “Hamilton would probably have won” at Silverstone without the Safety Car

For the first time this season, the team Mercedes was not fully satisfied with a podium. At Silverstone, thanks to the significant developments made by the German team, Lewis Hamilton has been fighting for victory for a long time. Before the abandonment ofEsteban Ocon and the intervention of the safety car, the Briton was even in a good position to look for the two Ferrari behind him. 

But the exit of the Safety Car reduced the chances of the seven-time world champion according to Toto wolff, the stable manager. “I think without the safety car he probably would have won the race. And in the end it was just Perez who was there and Sainz escaped. It doesn't matter... what's encouraging is that we had a car that was capable of being competitive. » Hamilton ultimately finished 3rd, behind Sainz and Pérez.

Overall, even though George Russell was unable to race after the first lap crash, Toto Wolff came away from the British Grand Prix with several reasons for satisfaction. “ The car was good and we were there to win the race. It is most encouraging, estimates the Austrian director. I think we probably lost a little bit of speed after the restart, but we had almost no problems rebounding. The pace was good on the hard and on the medium. Just with the soft tires we weren't able to really get the grip we would have liked in the end. »

“Austria has always been a bit difficult” for Mercedes: Wolff

The race at Silverstone marked a good step forward for the German team. Toto Wolff judges that Mercedes is still a little late to fight on a regular basis with Red Bull and Ferrari. “I think we just want to win races on our own. It would be great, to be there to fight with them. This is a goal, so that we also have a car that we can develop for next year. »

The Silver Arrows hope to confirm this good form at the next Grand Prix in Spielberg. But the director of the Brackley-based team is a little more pessimistic about the Austrian round. “Austria has always been a bit difficult for us. There are three corners that we don't like, turns 3 and 4 in particular. But top speed should be good there. On the other hand, Paul-Ricard should be a good race, but we still need to improve the car in general. »

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