F1 team in a quandary

Toto Wolff: “Ultimately, you can only lose”

Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff knows McLaren's dilemma all too well.

(Bild: AFP/GETTY IMAGES/Chris Graythen)

McLaren's decision not to impose a stable order despite their chances of winning the world title is causing discussion in the paddock. Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff, however, can empathize with the dilemma of his rival. "Ultimately, you can only lose," says the Viennese. 

The fact that McLaren allows its drivers to drive at their own discretion is met with mixed feelings among fans and the media. If Oscar Piastri had not passed Lando Norris in the first corner at Monza, for example, and perhaps even kept Charles Leclerc at bay, it would have been entirely possible for the Englishman to leave Italy with 25 points in his luggage. In the end, it was "only" 15 - not irrelevant in terms of the world championship ...

Are Oscar Piastri (l.) and Lando Norris standing in their own way?

(Bild: AFP/AFPAPA/PEDRO PARDO)

"The question is: what then?"
However, a stable order would also have its disadvantages, as Wolff knows all too well from the time when Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg fought for the title in the same team. "When you're fighting for victories as a top team, you're in a dilemma. Because on the one hand, we are all thoroughbred racers, and as such you want the better man to come out on top," says Wolff. "On the other hand, there is a point at which such a duel becomes dysfunctional and impairs the performance of the racing team. The question is: what then?"

Ultimately, as a team, you can only lose, "because if you impose a stable order, then that contradicts the nature of the racer and a driver is naturally disappointed." In the end, common sense has to win out, otherwise the team could end up regretting the points that they carelessly gave away. "This is walking a fine line and there is no universal solution for how to approach something like this," the Mercedes team boss is aware.

World championship hopes alive
Norris is currently 62 points behind leader Max Verstappen in the drivers' standings. With eight races still to go, the 24-year-old still has plenty of time to overtake the Dutchman, but he will not give up the title so easily. In the end, a few points could make the difference between victory and defeat - we can only hope that the McLaren men can live with their decisions at the end of the year ...