Toto Wolff says he believes that the relationship between Red Bull and Mercedes shouldn't be viewed as sour, but that a lot of the current 'bad blood' is simply down to the relationships between individuals. There has been quite a bit of mud-slinging between the two teams this season, after early-season dramas relating to flexi-wings on both cars gave way to technical directives in relation to Red Bull's pit-stops. But it was a high-profile crash between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton at Silverstone that really ignited the war of words, with Red Bull and Mercedes both making comments about each other in the press. In particular, Red Bull's Christian Horner and Helmut Marko were quite accusatory about Mercedes' celebrations after winning the British Grand Prix in the circumstances of Verstappen's crash. But Wolff has stressed that this doesn't reflect the reality of the relationship between the two teams/ "It's very important to not generalise Red Bull or Mercedes," he explained to Autosport. "It is very much a team sport, and there are individuals involved. Just because certain individuals don't go on well with each other, it doesn't mean that you are disrespecting the other entity and the people that work there, who are trying to do the best possible job in order to fulfil their own dreams and overcome their own worries. "So there is always respect for these organisations, and for the people in the organisations, and for the people in the teams. "The relationships were never splendid, and that comes from the sheer competition that we have." Wolff explained that he feels a lot of the current issues stem from the flames being stoked by Red Bull, saying that there appears to be a different approach taken towards conflict by the two teams. "But I would say that in the war of words, we have tried to maintain our cool, stay level-headed and not fuel controversy and polarisation among our fans even more," he said. "The aim was always to de-escalate. Unfortunately, the opposite happens on the other side."
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