Toto Wolff complains about the lack of entertainment. Image: dpa / Sebastian Gollnow
Formula 1
For Red Bull, things could hardly go better in Formula 1. The Azerbaijan Grand Prix on Sunday showed once again that the balance of power is clear. With the Mexican Sergio Pérez, a Red Bull driver clinched victory for the fourth time in a row.
However, this bull power could cause boredom rather than enthusiasm among the spectators. Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff now comments on this.
The watson app for your smartphone
The Mercedes team also competed in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. However, his drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell were also unable to prevail against Red Bull. They only finished sixth and eighth.
“It wasn’t a thriller. There were hardly any overtaking manoeuvres, despite the big differences in speed,” Toto Wolff summarizes the race. Such a competition is not “big entertainment”.
“It wasn’t much entertainment.”
According to Wolff, it is almost impossible to overtake. That is only conceivable if one of the drivers at the top makes a mistake.
However, Wolff does not want to draw a final conclusion on the rule changes of 2022. Among other things, the innovations should make overtaking maneuvers easier. “After a race weekend like this, we don’t have to throw everything (…) overboard,” says the Mercedes team boss.
However, the 53-year-old does not want to see races like the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on Sunday again. It’s about finding out how such races can be prevented.
The monotony at the top of Formula 1 is responsible for the lack of excitement. The current season is clearly dominated by Red Bull. On Sunday, Sergio Pérez not only clinched his fourth win in a row. Red Bull even managed a double win with Max Verstappen in second place.
“Two cars drive alone into the sunset,” is how Toto Wolff sums up the course of the race in Baku. This formation has a system. Spectators have been experiencing the superiority of the bulls throughout the season.
Mercedes boss Wolff speaks of a “pattern”. “There are two Red Bulls, behind them there are six cars and then the rest of the field comes far away,” he explains.
Something has to change about that. Wolff doesn’t seem to think much of rule innovations. He relies on the strength of his team: “We simply have to win based on our performance and that means being smarter than Red Bull.”
