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Wolff praises Verstappen after top season: 'Exceptional driver'

26 November 2023 at 15:24
Last update 26 November 2023 at 15:28
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  • Kada Sarkozi
  • Editor

All's well that ends well. If at least that can be said when summarising Mercedes' season: even though they finished second in the constructors' championship, but without a Grand Prix victory. Max Verstappen was too fast for his team almost every week. Toto Wolff could not express more than respect towards the three-time world champion after the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

"An exceptional season," Wolff told Sky Sports. "I mean, they've beaten a lot of records, testimony to a great driver. And the engineering team, that is Red Bull. It doesn't go any better. They are top notch. Let's be honest, they have a gap because they got well out of the block with the new regulations. Fine. And in order to catch up, that's a monumental endeavour. But at a certain stage, hopefully, they level off with their development speed and we can catch up."

Then Mercedes also has to step up: "Our car has a fundamental problem. It is instable. The drivers have no confidence in the car. If we can dial that out, then I think we can make a step forward like other teams have done."

No stress for Wolff

At least Mercedes took second place among the constructors, thanks to George Russell's third place finish in Abu Dhabi: "I think at the end, it was a great end for me too. I think that his driving was exceptional. I also think that Charles at the end, he shown sportsmanlike behaviour, not trying to slow down. Two great teams, two great brands, that's all that they did. Whether I was stressed? No, I was not stressed. I was stressed once in my life in Formula 1, and that was here a few years ago. It was a fight for P2. In a way, super positive for us as a team and for many employees as a reward to be vice-champion. But it also reminds you that it's P2."