Wolff: ‘respect needs to stay there’ between Bottas and Hamilton

Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff has said that ‘respect needs to stay there’ between his drivers Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas if their rivalry stays close.

Bottas won in Azerbaijan and regained the lead of the drivers’ championship by one point ahead of his teammate.
 
They have both won two race each of the first four, while the Mercedes cars have finished 1-2 as well.
 
"We are lucky that they have a very good relationship," Wolff said (quoted by F1i.com).

"They get on with each other, there is not a lot of games in the background. And I'm very happy about that.

"But as a matter of fact, we have to be conscious. We have seen relationships deteriorate. Both of the drivers, the respect needs to stay there.

"We're very strong as a team and we wouldn't allow the relationship between drivers to deteriorate to a point that it has a negative effect on the team.

"If that would ever be the case, again after Nico and Lewis we would issue yellow and red cards."

Nico Rosberg and Hamilton started off with a good relationship at Mercedes, but tensions grew as they were competing against each other for titles over their early dominant success.

"It reminds me a little bit [of 2014, '15 and '16]," Wolff added.

"You have two drivers that have the ambition and the ability to win a championship and it's up to us, together with them, to be very aware of that situation and remember that very quickly Vettel or Leclerc could be back into the game.

"We mustn't be carried away with the four first results."