Toto Wolff felt Valtteri Bottas drove perfectly as the Finn claimed his second Formula 1 race victory in the Austrian Grand Prix on Sunday, while Lewis Hamilton climbed from eighth on the grid to finish fourth, just missing out on a podium.
Bottas made what Wolff described as a ‘sensational start’ but the Head of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport admitted it was nerve-wracking knowing that the Finn was under investigation for a potential jump-start, only to have no action taken.
And Wolff feels Hamilton, who had started eighth after a penalty for a gearbox change, won the twelve points he managed for fourth place, even though his title rival Sebastian Vettel extended his advantage to twenty points by finishing second.
“That was a perfect day for Valtteri,” said Wolff. “He made a sensational start – although we had a few nervous moments when we heard it was under investigation.
“But after that he showed great pace in the first stint, then was able to manage a blistered tyre to the finish in the perfect way on his second stint. It was the perfect result for him and also for Lewis, to score maximum points.
“As for Lewis, he had a glimpse of P3 on the final laps but today it wasn’t quite meant to be. It was an afternoon of damage limitation for him and, in the final result, these are 12 points won and not six lost to Sebastian.
“He has had a tough run with the headrest problem in Baku and then the gearbox penalty here but he is still right in the fight. It’s not even half time in the championship and there are 275 points still to be won. Our target will be to let him fight back in the best possible way in Silverstone.”
