Hamilton's Ferrari feud gives Wolff Rosberg déjà vu as he warns it may need to boil over
Photo: Race Pictures
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Toto Wolff says the fallout between Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc feels like déjà vu, because he dealt with the same kind of fight between Hamilton and Nico Rosberg at Mercedes. The Mercedes boss also suggested that a rivalry like this sometimes has to hit a real low point before it settles.
Wolff was sitting next to Fred Vasseur in Friday's team principals' press conference in São Paulo, where the Ferrari boss took most of the questions about his drivers. In Mexico, Hamilton started from his first pole with Ferrari. Leclerc cut across the grass to take the lead, Max Verstappen got past and went on to win, and Leclerc finished fourth after a five-second penalty.
Wolff relates to Vasseur's Hamilton headache
At one point Wolff took the microphone to back Vasseur and told the room he had answered the same questions for years. "You've asked me exactly the same questions for how many years? 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016," he said.
"Sometimes when you put two strong drivers in there, the best ones have edges and they want to win, and that is a situation that is always very difficult to cope with, obviously under the media spotlight if those cars race at the front," Wolff added.
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In that respect, I can so relate to what Fred goes through at the moment. And I think sometimes it needs the really tough ones, where, like the last one, to make a point.- Toto Wolff
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Barcelona 2016 forced Mercedes to act
Barcelona was the low point of the Mercedes years. Hamilton and Rosberg crashed into each other on the opening lap of the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix, and Verstappen took his first win on his Red Bull debut. Rosberg revealed years later that the crash led Wolff to threaten both drivers with a race suspension. Wolff also threatened to change the line-up and warned that the drivers would pay for part of the damage if they collided again.
In those years, Wolff talked openly about the rules he was setting, at one point saying he would sack a driver who could not race cleanly. Vasseur is taking the opposite approach. "I'm not sure that Toto ten years ago told you exactly the content of the discussion with Nico and Lewis, and I will do exactly the same," the Ferrari boss said.
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Ferrari's guidelines unchanged as Hamilton chases Leclerc
Vasseur insists nothing has changed after the clear-the-air talks. "The guidelines are still the same," he said, adding that the drivers mainly need to respect the brand and the team. Leclerc also sounded relaxed but Wolff's message points the other way.
One tough conversation may not be enough to settle it. The Hamilton-Rosberg saga only really ended when Rosberg retired. At Ferrari, Hamilton is third in the standings with 259 points and Leclerc is fifth with 245, so both drivers still have a lot to race for.
One tough conversation may not be enough to settle it. The Hamilton-Rosberg saga only really ended when Rosberg retired. At Ferrari, Hamilton is third in the standings with 259 points and Leclerc is fifth with 245, so both drivers still have a lot to race for.
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