Toto Wolff has given his version of events after a seemingly tense exchange with Lewis Hamilton on qualifying day at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. Mercedes have endured a particularly difficult Imola weekend, with Wolff describing the W13 as "undriveable" after first practice, prior to both Hamilton and teammate George Russell dropping out in Q2 in qualifying. Television coverage picked up what appeared to be a heated debrief between Hamilton and Wolff, before the Briton headed to the back of the Mercedes garage.
Wolff and Hamilton shared "sheer anger"
Hamilton stated after qualifying that the discussion with Wolff was "all internal stuff" that he would "rather not share". Wolff has now offered some more details, explaining that he and Hamilton shared "sheer anger", but there are no hard feelings between the pair. "It's quite funny how it's been interpreted," Wolff told media, including RacingNews365.com . "Lewis and I shared frustration that we weren't really able to extract lap one performance [from the tyres] and how annoying it was, but it was basically the same point of view and just sheer anger. "There is no division or there is no blaming or anything [like] that."
Wolff: We need to dig ourselves out of this hole
Neither Hamilton nor Russell were able to make progress in the Sprint, meaning they will start Sunday's Grand Prix outside the points-paying positions. With Russell lining up 11th, and Hamilton back in 14th, Wolff is not surprised that tense moments are occurring. "There's pressure in the system, but I would say [it's] the necessary pressure to get things right," added Wolff. "Nobody in the team is anywhere near enjoying the ride at the moment. "This team, we've done it in the past, and we just need to dig ourselves out of that hole."
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