Wolff promises driver fairness despite Hamilton departure

Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff has promised that his squad will treat its drivers fairly during the upcoming campaign despite Lewis Hamilton's impending departure.

Hamilton announced last week that he will leave Mercedes at the end of the year and join rivals Ferrari.

The seven-time World Champion has signed a multi-year deal with the Italian outfit, signalling that he is ready for a new challenge.

Despite being on the way out of Mercedes, Hamilton will not be treated any differently to his team-mate George Russell, according to Wolff.

“I think what I've always tried to do as a Team Principal, and all of us at Mercedes, is to be transparent and fair,” Wolff told media including RacingNews365.

“And nothing's going to change in that respect in 2024. We owe it to our principles and our racing intent, how we go about - we will respect that.

“I will be sure that the drivers will respect it.”

Engineering briefings

Another headache facing Mercedes is Hamilton's involvement in engineering meetings during the season.

Typically, outgoing drivers tend to be phased out of briefings related to next year's car to avoid giving away secrets to their rivals.

Wolff confirmed that Mercedes will visit the situation later in the season but has no concerns over the possibility of divulging sensitive information to Ferrari.

“In terms of the development going forward, I think this is something which we need to look at,” Wolff said. “The regulations stay pretty much the same.

“When it comes to 2025, we will evaluate later in the season what it means in terms of technical information, but that's not something that bothers me at all.

“We have engineers that leave us and go to other teams and the notice periods are sometimes as short as six months.

“So I don't have any doubt in Lewis' integrity, in terms of sharing information. And in that respect, we want to make sure that this is a successful season for both drivers, and a successful season for Mercedes, and all of us will give our utmost to achieve that.”