ZANDVOORT, Netherlands (AP) 鈥� Mercedes boss Toto Wolff defended the use of team orders in the title fight after George Russell protested when he was asked to give up second place in the Dutch Grand Prix to teammate Kimi Antonelli.
Over team radio, Russell questioned the call to let Antonelli past in the final stages of , suggesting it left him vulnerable to Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton behind with little to gain for the team. Antonelli was on fresher tires but eventual winner Lando Norris was far ahead.
Russell, who held off Hamilton to keep third, relented after the race and said his teammate and title rival Antonelli 鈥渄eserved to finish ahead.”
鈥淭eam orders are always harsh from one driver鈥檚 perspective,鈥� Mercedes team principal Wolff said, arguing that not swapping positions would have left both drivers a target for Hamilton. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not losing time with each other if there are competitors breathing down our neck. We鈥檝e seen it with the Ferraris at the beginning of the year , you just lose so much race time, you risk losing more points.鈥�
Antonelli had been ahead of earlier in the race before Mercedes brought him in for fresh tires and that was another reason for the switch, Wolff added.
鈥淭oday, it wasn鈥檛 a very difficult call, because Kimi was running second, clear of George, and that鈥檚 basically the order we restored after the stop. So, a completely normal modus operandi, and we would have done it the other way around also,鈥� he said.
Antonelli will take a grid penalty at his home race
Antonelli, who turns 20 on Tuesday, faces another obstacle in his quest to become F1’s youngest-ever champion.
He will need to take a hefty grid penalty at his home Italian Grand Prix in two weeks’ time as Mercedes plans to swap his car’s power unit to head off potential reliability problems in the second half of the season. That will put Antonelli over his allowance of key components for the year.
鈥淥ur theory, our calculations say that that鈥檚 the best track to take it. Obviously, our algorithms don鈥檛 take the nationality into consideration,鈥� Wolff said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e here to fight for a championship and not the most PR, so that鈥檚 what we鈥檙e going to do.鈥�
Monza is a high speed track where Mercedes’ engine is likely to be strong, and overtaking is relatively easy, giving Antonelli a chance to make up places. He’s accepted the decision.
鈥淚 think it still will give me a chance to do a great result and bring home good points,鈥� he said.
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