F1 | Mercedes, Toto Wolff admits: "The double pit was not necessary"

The one without Lewis Hamilton was the most difficult race for Mercedes, ending in a disaster that saw George Russell's hopes of winning his first grand prix shattered. However, Valtteri Bottas' reputation seems to have been shattered, but also the millionaire sum that Lewis would have asked the three-point star for the renewal. The rising star of Formula 1, unfairly relegated to Williams, has reduced the value of the two drivers at the helm of the Silver Arrows, creating some headaches for Wolff himself. If Lewis Hamilton doesn't turn negative after contracting covid-19, Russell could take his revenge on the Sakhir race, which is a bit reminiscent of Daniel Ricciardo's bitter Monaco 2016. The fact that Wolff admits that that pit stop wasn't necessary certainly doesn't help him digest this defeat.

"I want to congratulate Racing Point and Sergio for the victory, and to Lance and Esteban for the podium. It's great to see a revamped podium, they've done a brilliant job. As for us, we made a huge mess – admitted the team principal – obviously, everything was perfect until the Safety Car, we were leading the race, the performance was good on the hard tires and we could have stayed on track, but we had the gap to make a stop without losing our advantage and we took the opportunity. I absolutely believe it was the right choice, but it came too late. Plus, there was a problem with the radios, so we didn't have the right tires ready for the pit.

"This is why George returned to the track with the wrong tyres, while Valtteri kept the same tyres – continued Wolff – then we had to paint again to fix the mistake on George's car. At that point the race was not yet lost, and George put up an impressive fight; but then there was the slow puncture and this compromised everything. These are things that can happen, but obviously we will need to investigate these issues, learn and move forward. It was devastating for George, after a masterful performance in his first race for Mercedes, he could have won. It didn't happen today, but I'm sure this won't be his last opportunity. As for Valtteri, it was a difficult race for him too, that old set of tires complicated everything in the end. We will certainly learn from this weekend, and we will return stronger to Abu Dhabi.