Formula 1 Hungarian GP
Wolff: Bottas Hungary crash won’t influence 2022 F1 driver decision
Toto Wolff says Valtteri Bottas’s first-corner crash in Hungary will not have any impact on Mercedes’ Formula 1 driver decision for 2022.
Luke Smith
Edited: Aug 7, 2021, 11:13 AM
Copy link
Share on Viber
Mercedes is currently weighing up whether to continue with Bottas as Lewis Hamilton’s teammate for next season, or promote junior driver George Russell into the senior team.
Russell has been part of Mercedes’ young driver programme since 2017, and has impressed in F1 since making his debut with Williams in 2019. He scored his first points for the team in Hungary last weekend, finishing eighth.
Russell’s best F1 result was aided by two first-corner crashes in damp conditions involving seven cars, one of which was triggered by Bottas.
The Mercedes driver misjudged his braking point and slid into the rear of Lando Norris, whose McLaren then careered into Max Verstappen’s Red Bull.
Bottas’s car continued into the path of Sergio Perez in the second Red Bull, with all drivers bar Verstappen forced to retire due to damage.
The error sparked criticism from Norris, who said he expected better from top F1 drivers. Bottas apologised and took full blame for the incident, and was hit with a five-place grid penalty for the Belgian Grand Prix after the summer break.
But Mercedes F1 chief Wolff made clear that Bottas’s mistake would not have an impact on the team’s driver decision for 2022.
“No, the mistake was unfortunate with big consequences,” Wolff said.
“He got sandwiched by the two cars in front, lost all downforce, and then it was already too late.
“It doesn’t influence at all the decision.”
Read Also:
- Mercedes baffled by Red Bull's 'odd' F1 wing choice
- How queue-jumping Russell avoided an F1 penalty in Hungary
- Why unseen Hungary heroics could be Latifi's making
Mercedes is expected to make a decision between Bottas and Russell over the summer break, and will be the first major domino to fall in the driver market for next year.
Bottas felt disappointed after his third DNF of the 2021 season, having collided with Russell at Imola in the wet and lost a comfortable second-place finish at Monaco due to a wheel nut failure.
The Finn sits fourth in the drivers’ championship, 87 points behind Mercedes teammate Hamilton, and has failed to win a race this year.
Bottas acknowledged that the season so far “hasn’t gone my way”, but believed he had been making progress in recent races prior to his Hungary crash.
“At least in the last few races, it feels like it’s been slightly positive, getting some podiums and more points,” Bottas said.
“But now I have three DNFs, which is quite a lot in terms of points, so it’s not been great.
“But there’s still more than half to go in terms of number of races and we keep going.”
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Mercedes baffled by Red Bull's 'odd' F1 wing choice
Next article Masi insists Spa is safe for F1 following high-speed GT3 crash
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Luke Smith
1998 Belgian GP: When the Schumachers went to war
Formula 1
Formula 1
1998 Belgian GP: When the Schumachers went to war
The race that transformed perceptions of Red Bull
Formula 1
Formula 1
The race that transformed perceptions of Red Bull
Hamilton in the process of selecting Brad Pitt’s co-star for F1 movie
Formula 1
Formula 1
Hamilton in the process of selecting Brad Pitt’s co-star for F1 movie
More from
Mercedes
Kimi Antonelli ready to "finish the job" as first F1 title chance beckons at US GP
Formula 1
Formula 1
United States GP
1 h
Kimi Antonelli ready to "finish the job" as first F1 title chance beckons at US GP
The figures that show Mercedes has lost its supremacy in F1 2026
Formula 1
Formula 1
United States GP
The figures that show Mercedes has lost its supremacy in F1 2026
Latest news
Max Verstappen slams “unacceptable” bumps at Austin F1 track: “It's out of control”
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
United States GP
1 h
Max Verstappen slams “unacceptable” bumps at Austin F1 track: “It's out of control”
Kimi Antonelli ready to "finish the job" as first F1 title chance beckons at US GP
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
United States GP
1 h
Kimi Antonelli ready to "finish the job" as first F1 title chance beckons at US GP
How to watch NASCAR at Talladega II: Weekend schedule, start time, entry list, TV
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Talladega II
2 h
How to watch NASCAR at Talladega II: Weekend schedule, start time, entry list, TV
Peterson Racing addresses online abuse after parting ways with Austin Green
NASCAR O'Reilly
NOAP NASCAR O'Reilly
Talladega II
2 h
Peterson Racing addresses online abuse after parting ways with Austin Green
Feature
Discover prime content
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe