Mercedes boss doesn't know if Hamilton will return to F1 after decision left him a “sitting duck”
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff cannot guarantee if Lewis Hamilton will race again after the debacle in Sunday’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Max Verstappen was crowned World Champion in controversial fashion after race director Michael Masi allowed some – but now all – unlapped cars to unlap themselves before the final lap, paving the way for Verstappen to have one last crack at overtaking Hamilton in the final lap.
Despite initially signalling intent to appeal, Mercedes released a statement on Thursday night (AEDT) crediting Verstappen for the win.
Team Statement - Abu Dhabi Grand Prix pic.twitter.com/tgrBjrNkcz
— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) December 16, 2021
However, speaking after the statement, Wolff repeatedly refused to guarantee that Hamilton would get behind the wheel for Mercedes again, but added the 36-year-old is at the “peak” of his game.
“It is going to take a long time to digest what has happened on Sunday,” Wolff said.
“I don’t think we will ever get over it, that’s not possible. Lewis and I are disillusioned at the moment. We’re not disillusioned with the sport. We love the sport with every bone in our body. And we love it because the stopwatch never lies.
“But if we break that fundamental principle of sporting fairness and authenticity, then suddenly the stopwatch doesn’t become relevant any more. Because we are exposed to random decision-making. And it is clear that you may fall out of love with a sport if you start to question, with all the work you have been doing, all the sweat and tears and blood.
“I very much hope that Lewis continues racing because he’s the greatest driver of all time.
“We will be working through the events over the next weeks and months and I think that as a racer, his (Hamilton's) heart will say: ‘I need to continue’, because he is at the peak of his game.
“But we have to overcome the pain that was caused upon him on Sunday, also because he is a man with clear values and it is difficult for him to understand how that happened. I just have to do the utmost that I can to help him overcome this, in order for him to return strong and with a love of the sport and trust in the decision-making of the sport next year.”
Wolff said it was “almost guaranteed” that their legal grounds were enough to win on appeal after the call that left Hamilton a “sitting duck”.
“It wasn’t just a bad call, it was a freestyle reading of the rules and it left Lewis like a sitting duck. The decisions that have been taken in the last four minutes of this race have robbed Lewis Hamilton of a deserved world championship. His driving in the last four races was faultless. He had a commanding lead from the get-go. He won the start and never gave the lead away again, and robbing him in the last lap of the race is unacceptable," he continued.
“If you look at the legal side, how it would have been judged in a regular court it is almost guaranteed that we would have won,” Wolff said. “But the problem with the FIA is the way it’s structured. The FIA can’t really mark their own homework, and there is a difference between being right and obtaining justice.”
The FIA have announced they will review how Masi came to make the decision that has been heavily criticised after acknowledging the incident “tarnished the image of the championship”.