Mercedes

Wolff SLAMS selfish F1 drivers for ruining Mercedes star's weekend

Matthew Hobkinson Monday 24 July 2023 07:57

Wolff SLAMS selfish F1 drivers for ruining Mercedes star's weekend

Toto Wolff has slammed Formula 1 drivers for failing to adhere to a "gentleman's agreement" not to overtake each other when queuing up for a flying lap, after George Russell failed to make it out of Q1 on Saturday.

Russell was caught in a queue of traffic at the end of Q1 that saw multiple cars sail past him in their bid to get a final flying lap in.

The Mercedes star failed to progress to Q2 as he made a shock exit in the first session, only managing to put his car in P18 for lights out.

Despite admitting that the Silver Arrows did not get their strategy right for Russell's qualifying, Wolff was adamant that his driver's lap was compromised by the unsportsmanlike actions of those behind him.

Wolff: Russell's qualifying ruined by other drivers

George Russell will start the Hungarian Grand Prix down in P18

“We made a mistake with George," he said. "We should have put him in a much better position on track and we’ve apologised to him for that.

"There’s a gentleman’s agreement that you don’t overtake one another as time is running out. He had a number of cars move ahead of him though and that obviously screwed up his last lap.

“We will be fighting tomorrow, and we know it will be tough. The long run pace of others looked strong but form in the race sometimes looks a little different to practice.

"We will be giving it everything we’ve got and see what our car is capable of.”

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