F1 News: Mercedes Chief Remains Adamant Lewis Hamilton Can Win 8th Championship
In a statement following the 2023 season finale, Mercedes boss Toto Wolff expressed strong confidence in Lewis Hamilton's abilities to secure an unprecedented eighth world title, putting pressure on the team with the need for a competitive car. Wolff's remarks come after a challenging phase for Hamilton, who remained winless in 2022 and 2023.
Key Takeaways:
- Toto Wolff's Confidence in Hamilton: Despite recent setbacks, Wolff remains confident in Hamilton's capabilities, believing that with a better car, Hamilton can vie for the world championship.
- Hamilton's Record and Current Standing: Hamilton, who matched Michael Schumacher's championship record in 2020, faced a tough phase due to changes in regulations and stiff competition, particularly from Red Bull.
- Mercedes' Historical Success and Future Goals: Mercedes, having dominated the constructors' championships in the past decade, aims to add more wins to their record. Wolff envisions a future where Mercedes continues to be a dominant force in Formula 1.
Lewis Hamilton, who has been a cornerstone of Mercedes' success, faced an uphill battle in recent seasons. Mercedes team principal and CEO Toto Wolff, however, has not wavered in his support for Hamilton. Speaking after the 2023 season finale, Wolff acknowledged Hamilton's rough weekend but underscored his belief in Hamilton's unparalleled prowess. He explained:
“From Lewis’ perspective, he had a bad weekend, fact. I think that doesn’t do anything on him being the greatest driver in the world."
Hamilton's journey has been nothing short of spectacular. After equalling Michael Schumacher's championship tally in 2020, he narrowly missed surpassing it in a dramatic showdown with Max Verstappen in 2021. The subsequent years, however, have been challenging, with Hamilton unable to clinch a win in both 2022 and 2023. This dip in form coincides with the introduction of ground effect regulations, which took Mercedes in the wrong direction with a zero sidepod design.
Despite these challenges, Wolff's faith in Hamilton is unwavering. He firmly believes that with the right car, Hamilton can fight for the world championship.
“If we’re able to give him a car, then he would be fighting for a World Championship, I have no doubt. It’s clear that when you have a Formula 1 car like we have now, you’re never at ease with it – you have good weekends and bad weekends.
“In the end, every time where we’ve seen that Lewis has someone in his target in front of him, and it was about winning the race, then the real Lewis comes alive, and I think we just need to give him that [opportunity].”
Wolff continued:
“We have a board in our factory which shows all the constructors’ championships since 1958,” he continued. “The table goes until 2050, and you have the logos, the badges for each of the years. There [are] 27 open, empty badges, and I would like to look back in 20 years and say, ‘There’s many more Mercedes stars’.
“When you’re retrospective – and I hate retrospective views – but when we look back in 10 or 20 years and we consider that big, big decade it was: second, first, first, first, first, first, first, first, first, first, third, second.
“When we look at it from that perspective, we kind of say, ‘That was okay’. Now, from a micro view, there’s one guy that won 19 races [in 2023], so that is, of course, not good enough.”