Wolff bets on Verstappen DNF: 'Then Hamilton is on the hunt again'

Looking back at the recently completed Austrian Grand Prix, where Max Verstappen took victory for the third time in a row, Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff now sees the balance of power between the top two teams tilting. Despite this, Wolff argues, his star driver only has to wait for one Verstappen-DNF before he is back in the running.

"Of course, losing every point is a blow", Wolff began in conversation with The Telegraph. "Lewis lost six points compared to finishing second and adding that all up is making the momentum go in the wrong direction."

In light of Verstappen's maximum result, Wolff therefore sees his team losing the tag of favourites: "Losing 14 points [to Verstappen] is not great and it is against the odds for us now."

Chase opened after a DNF

Wolff continued, believing the battle of the titans as far from decided: "But this is far from over. He is 32 points behind Max, which is a DNF away, and then he is in the hunt again. We need to up our game, make less mistakes and continue to understand the car better."