Share

Mercedes boss: 'We're not idiots any more'

MONTREAL, Canada - Lewis Hamilton celebrated by chatting, posing for photos and signing autographs with the fans, Nico Rosberg kept his dignity and his cool and Mercedes breathed a sigh of relief.

After the debacle of its 2015 Monaco GP pit-stop fiasco, the team were back on form after Hamilton led Rosberg in a perfect one-two finish at the 2015 Canadian GP.

"We are not idiots any more, are we?" said team chief Toto Wolff. Nobody can argue with that.

HAMILTON BOUNCES BACK

Montreal was Mercedes' fourth one-two of 2015 and it was Hamilton's fourth victory of the season - ample proof, if needed, that Mercedes and its driving ace remain favourites for the Drivers' and Constructors' titles.

After his 37th win of his career, Hamilton leads Rosberg by 17 points in the title race with much-improved Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel third, 43 points behind.

Wolff said: "The calls made on the pitwall were faultless, the execution was really good, so we're not always idiots. It's very rare because today was very tight. We needed to keep concentrated.

"If you have a weekend like Monaco, it's difficult to digest it and come out of it in a good way. So the team needed that result today."

Team chairman Niki lauda added: "I can't complain of anything because Lewis did a great job, Nico the same and everybody else was more or less nowhere. It was a perfect weekend. The shock of Monaco is over."

Wolff explained that the team had decided not to make public that Hamilton's race engineer Peter 'Bono' Bonnington's father had died earlier June 2015.

It was, he said, a deliberate move to avoid allowing them all to be brought down further as they sought a perfect riposte to the humiliating events in Monte Carlo where Hamilton's unexpected late and unnecessary pit-stop cost him a near-certain win.

‘THE TEAM NEEDED THAT’

Wolff said: "The team needed that result. Lewis's race engineer 'Bono' lost his father a couple of days ago and we wanted to keep that out of the public.

"It's important not to get dragged into a black hole and because, you know, we still finished first and third in Monaco."

Looking ahead, Wolff warned his team to expect a much stronger challenge from Vettel, who finished fifth on Sunday (May 7) behind Williams’ Valtteri Bottas and Ferrari team mate Kimi Raikkonen.

Wolff said: "Psychologically, I guess it's good that when a competitor expects more performance, you are able to stay on top."

Stay with Wheels24 for the 2015 F1 season – fresh reports every day.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()