During the final phase of Japanese GP, in Suzuka Hamilton and Russell gave rise to a duel so intense and aggressive that it forced the Mercedes team principal, Toto Wolff, absent in the paddock due to a knee operation, to make a telephone call from home to decide on the strategy to communicate to the box wall. Toto Wolff then ordered George Russell to give up the position to Lewis Hamilton, in order to prevent Carlos Sainz, with a rather fast Ferrari he could overtake both cars.
Trouble at Mercedes?
All that glitters is not gold, and as happens in other teams, even in Mercedes the climate is starting to get hot when it comes to hierarchies between drivers. In Japan Russell wanted to redeem himself for the tragic ending to Singapore, where, on the last lap, while trying to overtake Norris for second place, he lost control of his W14, hitting the wall and ruining the podium and the hard work of the entire weekend. With that move, Russell also handed the podium to his teammate, Lewis Hamilton who certainly didn't hold back in defending himself at Suzuka.
The team thought they had the upper hand on the Ferraris thanks to tire management. But it didn't happen that way. The battle with Russell, who was struggling a lot with only 1 pit stop, was not appreciated by Hamilton who considered it senseless and useless. By making them fight, Mercedes ran the risk of losing precious points unnecessarily.
The team order comes from Toto Wolff
Following everything remotely, for fear of losing further important points from a manufacturer perspective, Toto Wolff decided to intervene on the issue. The team principal then communicated the correct order of the two drivers to the wall, thus ordering the reversal of positions to avoid feeding both to Carlos Sainz, with fresher tyres. Russell actually didn't last long. His 1-stop strategy, different from that of Lewis, did not pay off. It was important for Lewis not to waste too much time behind Russell. If the order had not arrived, both would have risked overtaking Sainz. Russell hoped he could use the same DRS trick Sainz used in Singapore. But that didn't work either. The team was then encouraged by Wolff who, with a providential call, cut the matter short.
The Russell-Hamilton pairing is perhaps the best in the paddock. On one side there is a 7-time world champion, on the other the future of Formula 1, a young promise. However, both of them want to prove something and this can undermine the peace and tranquility in the garage. Lewis knows this well, when on his debut he teamed up with Fernando Alonso, already a multiple champion. To avoid this, Mercedes will have to establish the hierarchies through Wolff, especially when there are no world titles at stake.
Source: Motorsport.com
