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The Canadian Grand Prix Sprint at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve was entertaining enough on its own terms. George Russell took victory from pole, finishing 1.272 seconds ahead of Lando Norris, with championship leader Kimi Antonelli a further half-second back in third.
But the real story wasn’t the result. It was the fireworks on team radio that accompanied it.
On lap six, Antonelli twice tried to pass Russell and was forced onto the grass on both occasions, at which point he called for his own teammate to be handed a penalty. That’s when Toto Wolff came over the radio to urge the teenager to calm down.
Antonelli had called the defending move “very naughty” and insisted he had been “pushed off,” with engineer Peter Bonnington initially trying to settle him before Wolff stepped in: “Concentrate on the racing please and not the radio moaning.”
Wolff then issued a second message later in the race: “Kimi this is the fourth time – we talk about it internally and not over the radio, OK?”
It sounds severe, and now the team boss is doing a bit of damage control as he downplayed the fiery reaction from his driver.
Speaking after the race on Sky Sports F1, Wolff was relaxed about what happened. He called it “great cinema,” adding that the intra-team battle had handed Norris second place, and admitted the risk it opened up his team to. If the fight had gone on longer, he said, Norris might well have won.
“You know, I really enjoy these moments because it allows us to learn and to say, okay, what are we doing with this situation? How are we handling that in the future?” Wolff said. “Because you don’t want to lose a race, you don’t want to crash into each other, and sometimes it needs a little moment to remind ourselves what our objectives are.”
He was clear that the radio messages weren’t aimed at singling Antonelli out. “It’s not particularly against one or the other, but there is a framework that we want to establish,” Wolff continued, adding that he was relieved it played out in a sprint rather than a main race where the championship points are heavier. He also made the point that Russell, for all his experience, would have reacted the same way in Antonelli’s position. “He’s a young driver. I think George would have probably done the same.”
Russell’s Sprint win cut Antonelli’s championship lead to 18 points heading into Sunday’s Grand Prix qualifying.
The Italian had won the previous three races to build that advantage over his more experienced teammate.
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But the real story wasn’t the result. It was the fireworks on team radio that accompanied it.
On lap six, Antonelli twice tried to pass Russell and was forced onto the grass on both occasions, at which point he called for his own teammate to be handed a penalty. That’s when Toto Wolff came over the radio to urge the teenager to calm down.
Antonelli had called the defending move “very naughty” and insisted he had been “pushed off,” with engineer Peter Bonnington initially trying to settle him before Wolff stepped in: “Concentrate on the racing please and not the radio moaning.”
Wolff then issued a second message later in the race: “Kimi this is the fourth time – we talk about it internally and not over the radio, OK?”
It sounds severe, and now the team boss is doing a bit of damage control as he downplayed the fiery reaction from his driver.
Wolff Saw It as a Teaching Moment, Not a Crisis
Speaking after the race on Sky Sports F1, Wolff was relaxed about what happened. He called it “great cinema,” adding that the intra-team battle had handed Norris second place, and admitted the risk it opened up his team to. If the fight had gone on longer, he said, Norris might well have won.
“You know, I really enjoy these moments because it allows us to learn and to say, okay, what are we doing with this situation? How are we handling that in the future?” Wolff said. “Because you don’t want to lose a race, you don’t want to crash into each other, and sometimes it needs a little moment to remind ourselves what our objectives are.”
He was clear that the radio messages weren’t aimed at singling Antonelli out. “It’s not particularly against one or the other, but there is a framework that we want to establish,” Wolff continued, adding that he was relieved it played out in a sprint rather than a main race where the championship points are heavier. He also made the point that Russell, for all his experience, would have reacted the same way in Antonelli’s position. “He’s a young driver. I think George would have probably done the same.”
Russell’s Sprint win cut Antonelli’s championship lead to 18 points heading into Sunday’s Grand Prix qualifying.
The Italian had won the previous three races to build that advantage over his more experienced teammate.
Continue reading...
