General
Wolff: "Young drivers are easily criticised"
- GPblog.com
Toto Wolff has great confidence in George Russell, but the Mercedes team boss does not want to rush things. The 49-year-old Austrian wants to leave Russell in the lee for a while so that the British driver can gain routine and experience without too much criticism.
"Winning world titles in Formula 1 is about making as few mistakes as possible. And that only comes with routine and experience," Wolff is quoted as saying by Motorsport.com. Mercedes therefore wants to bring Russell in quietly and give him time to develop and learn.
Learning from mistakes
Wolff senses a trend of talented drivers being treated more and more harshly in the media in recent years, especially when they are competing for podium places, for example.
"Young drivers are quick to criticise when they make mistakes in the environment of a top team, where there is a lot of pressure on their shoulders. That's why it's important to learn from experiences like Imola to become a driver who can consistently perform at a high level."
At Imola, Russell crashed behind the safety car on Sunday. The young driver was set for a points finish and that made the grapes even more sour than they already were. Russell is preparing for his third consecutive season with Williams. The chance that he will replace Valtteri Bottas at Mercedes next year is very high.