Mercedes drivers George Russell and Lewis Hamilton suffered from heatstroke in F1 Singapore GP, as Toto Wolff expands on troubled race.
Just after the F1 Singapore GP ended, Mercedes sent out a message about Russell and Hamilton missing the post-race media sessions to be held at the Media Pen. They noted about the drivers having to recover from the race’s ‘exertions’.
And it so happened that neither Russell and nor Hamilton did the post-race media session, with only Wolff answering the call. Mercedes sent out a press quote from the drivers, who finished fourth and sixth after starting from third and fourth.
Hamilton undertook a bold strategy to start the race on the soft compound and make up ground at the start. But it didn’t work out that way. He remained third and started to hinder teammate Russell, who was on the medium compound.
Wolff noted that the strategy they chose was as they decided before the race and was taken taking into account the previous races held in Singapore. They eventually read the race wrong, as things didn’t happen the same when they started to struggle.
It was not a happy day for Hamilton who eventually finished sixth – behind Russell, Charles Leclerc and Oscar Piastri – after starting in third and ahead of them. “It is hard to describe the range of emotions you feel when we have a difficult race like that,” he said. “This year continues to be a testing one for everyone, but we are all pushing as hard as we can.
“We don’t always get things right and that was the case today with our strategy. We all head into the weekend, and every decision we take, with the right intentions and sometimes it doesn’t work out. It can be frustrating, but we are all in this together. We have lost some form to the leaders in the past few races and we’re working hard to figure out why that is.
“We will do what we do best though and that is to come together as a team, analyse and refocus ahead of Austin. We will head there with energy, drive, and determination. It’s another opportunity to show what we can do when we get things right and to hopefully take a step forward with the car,” summed up Hamilton.
Both he and Russell were seen limping out of the car post-race in the parc ferme, trying to catch their breath. The Brit was fine with fourth but was not too pleased with the gap to the drivers ahead. He finished more than a minute behind Lando Norris eventually.
“After a very difficult Friday, we would have likely taken P4 in the Grand Prix,” said Russell. “Our pace in Qualifying however made us believe we could achieve more. Today was no doubt a difficult race for us, both challenging in terms of our pace but also physically. The McLarens were very impressive and in another league to us, whilst Max had the legs on us.
“We were able to hold off the Ferrari of Charles in the closing stages, so it was very much an evening of damage limitation. Given the pace of the car, that was the very best we could have achieved. We have a lot of work to do in the coming weeks to understand why we’ve struggled to challenge at the front in the past few races.
“We haven’t been as competitive since the summer break and that is frustrating. We will work hard to get on top of it though and hopefully the updates we bring to the next race in Austin will help us take a step closer to the front,” summed up Russell. As noted, it was only Wolff who spoke to media briefly after the race.
He admitted that it was a painful evening eventually especially after seeing how far behind they finished in terms of time, if not positions. “It was a really painful, painful evening,” said Wolff. “It’s not about when you look at the positions. You know, fourth and sixth. That’s not good, especially when you’re starting second and third.
“The car is just….we struggle at the moment with tracks that are hot and tough on traction. It was here, it was Baku, but this is no excuse. I think it’s just at the moment not what we expect from ourselves. Because if your quickest car is a minute behind the leader it’s just difficult to accept. I think we’ve read the race wrong.
“We took a decision based on historic Singapore races where it’s basically a procession like Monaco, and that the soft tyre would give him an opportunity at the start as pretty much the only overtaking opportunity. That was the wrong decision that we all took together jointly.
“Felt like a good offset, but with the rear tyre deg that we had, there was just one way, and that was backwards. So I think there was a logic behind it, but obviously was contrary of what we should have decided. But it doesn’t hide away from the fact that when a car is too slow, you’re too slow. Maybe your position ahead or behind, that doesn’t change anything,” summed up Wolff.
When asked about his drivers, Wolff asserted that they were fine after an ice bath, after having suffered from boderline heatstroke. “They’re both suffering from the overheating, but they’re fine now,” he said. “They put themselves in an ice bath, and I think that helped a bit.
“They didn’t feel well at the beginning, I think there was a borderline heatstroke or something like that but they have had water. They would not have been able to go to the media pen. There were no bad feelings or any annoyance. It is just that we had the doctors with them. But they are all good.”
Here’s how F1 Singapore GP panned out
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