Toto Wolff opens up about George Russell's team order request and dual pit stop strategy

During the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix 2024 at Imola Mercedes duo George Russell and Lewis Hamilton had some confusion. Hamilton who opted for a one-stop strategy got an opportunity to surpass his teammate when Russell was called back at the last moment for another pit stop. 

After the incident, Russell was heard asking for his 6th position as he was holding it for a long run but it didn’t happen. Now, Mercedes chief Toto Wolff opens up about the incident and called it a ‘safety call.’ He said, “We haven’t spoken.” 

“His lap times were getting slower and slower. Our forecast, at the time, said he wouldn’t make it to the end. We didn’t want to lose the position to Sergio Perez. So that was the call. The forecast was three or four laps short, to make it”, he further added. 

‘Hamilton would have beaten him’, says Toto Wolff 

Further speaking about the incident Mercedes team principal said that he believes Lewis Hamilton would have beaten Russell even later hadn’t stopped twice. “Lewis would have probably taken him, anyway,” he added.

“The point is, we are racing for P6 and P7. We, at least, wanted to keep the Red Bull behind. It was a safety call. We are making steps in where we want the car to be,” Wolff added.

“We are 30s off the quickest guys. That is a lot. P6 and P7 is nothing to be proud of. You can hear the frustration in my voice. There is more to come. It’s incremental gains, marginal gains, that we need to make. That’s how the sport goes."

Mercedes' lacklustre performance in the 2024 season persisted at Imola, marking a disappointing start. This marks the first instance since 2011 that Mercedes has failed to secure a podium finish in the opening seven rounds of the season. Despite introducing upgrades to their car, Mercedes' overall competitiveness has seen little improvement.