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vro0m · 2 years

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"What happened is a real scandal."

Here is a homemade, not so great translation of that VERY STRAIGHTFORWARD Toto interview that I mentioned yesterday.

I’ll put most of it under a cut because it’s long.

Please note that all comments are from the journalist himself and that he is indeed an asshole.

(Source : Le Matin Dimanche, 20.11.22)

Last year, your team felt like they were the victim of a terrible injustice. How can one bounce back from such a situation?

(In perfect French.) Oof, it's a difficult question. (He pauses.) The only way to come back from it is to remember that, after all, it's only sport... The world isn't at stake! But of course, all of us, in the team, we give everything and we all believe in the... "stopwatch's honesty". In Abu Dhabi, the stopwatch wasn't honest. The one who was the fastest (note : Lewis Hamilton) didn't win because of... (Another pause.) Well, the word "mistake" wouldn't be appropriate to describe what happened. It's rather a real scandal. But the worst thing... Was that the entire world, the other teams, the media, everyone decided that that's how it is, and that what had happened, after all, wasn't particularly unacceptable.

What if it was you who had won the title that way?

I think we would have been a lot more humble. We would without a doubt have said that the race gods were on our side that day, but that we understood that it was hard to accept for Red Bull. Whereas last year, on the contrary, the Red Bull people didn't say anything like that. They partied like for a real title won in normal conditions. Frankly, it made our loss even more difficult to digest.

Could such a situation happen again someday?

I don't think so. The situation is much better now, the decisions are taken with more transparency. Everything that has happened around the cost cap affair (note : in which Red Bull has been condemned last month for breaching the budget) showed that the federation now admits its mistakes. Look at what happened with Gasly in Suzuka, the situation has been analysed immediately and the problem corrected (note : when Pierre Gasly found himself on track facing a crane under the Suzuka rain, reminiscent of the accident that caused the death of Jules Bianchi in 2014). Formula 1 needs honest and transparent policemen, and I think it's now the case. I don't believe that what happened in Abu Dhabi could happen again.

Why?

Because that day, several dysfunctions lined up : what the race director did was nonsense, and right after, we filed an appeal with the stewards. They, that night, should have corrected the injustice, that's what they are here for. But, pardon my French, they didn't have the balls to correct the mistake, or to at least send the affair in front of an appeal court. Everyone wanted a champion right away and they decided to confirm the result of the race. Even if it was unfair, and they knew it was.

Do you still think about it?

Always. Every day.

You're leading a 1500 person team. It must sometimes create very difficult challenges...

No, frankly, I don't find my job difficult. I'm at ease, in my comfort zone! Well, there's always decisions to make but that's nothing. You know, in my life, I've known such delicate situations, in my childhood in particular, that this doesn't do anything to me. (Note : his dad suffered from brain cancer and died during his son's teenage years.) This sport, I feel so good in it that I feel no pressure. Of course, being behind the others, like this year, annoys me. But it's a... Let's say positive annoyance. Wanting to beat them excites me.

During the qualifications and the races, when the cameras show you in the garage, you seem impassive. What are you thinking about?

Yes, well, sometimes I react in ways I'm not proud of. (He smiles. He's alluding to the 2021 Saudi Arabian GP, during which he broke his headset in anger.) I try to stay calm and focused. I perceive everything happening around me. It's to stay lucid, to try to manage the best way I can. It's a little bit like a plane pilot : if one panics, one does a bad job. And when I lose my cool, it's when I feel an injustice. When I threw my headset in Jeddah, it was when Verstappen braked right in the middle of the straight and Lewis hit him. I thought our championship chances were lost.

You have a busy life between your Monaco apartment, your Oxford house, your wife who is leading a Formula E team, and your 5 year old son. With next year's 24 grand prix, how will you manage all these lives?

It might look complicated as far as travelling goes, yes. But I have a very stable family situation. My marriage is fantastic, it could not have been better, our organisation is perfect. Monaco is our base, that's where I have my office, where Jack goes to school, where a lady takes care of him when we're gone. But when we're there, we take care of him. As far as personal life goes, I feel on top! At the moment (note : the interview took place in Mexico) Susie and the little one are in Oxford, because there's a school holiday in Monaco. Once I go home, his grandparents will take him camping. He loves it. In the meantime, Susie and I will go to Lisbon for one of our sponsors. Then we will go back to Oxford to get Jack on Sunday and we will be back in Monaco for school. It's our life. We've always done it like this, it runs smoothly.

What regrets do you have?

Oh, a lot! (He laughs.) I could have taken better decisions sometimes in this or that race, details like that. My biggest regret is that my first marriage didn't work. Because happiness for me is spending time with my family. You know, we spend a lot of days together. When I go to a grand prix, it's minimal service. I leave on Thursday and I'm back Sunday night (note : in private jets, it's faster !). The rest of the time, I'm available for my family.

This year, after 8 titles, you will probably end up third in the constructor standings. It must be difficult...

It's a rather complicated situation. (He thinks.) After that much success, it's normal we felt a drop in enthusiasm in our team. Imagine if you celebrated Christmas 8 times a year rather than once. The eighth time, you probably won't be as excited as the first (note : admitting Christmas excites you in the first place). What motivates me, as I said, is precisely trying to get back to winning.

Why didn't it work this year?

We lost because we didn't predict the consequences of the regulation changes that happened this winter correctly (note : with the return of the ground effect). We didn't see the porpoising (note : the bouncing) coming, neither in the wind tunnel, nor in the simulations. It surprised us. For me, it was difficult to see our engineers not understanding what was happening. But to get back on top, the whole team is even more motivated now than during our successful years. Winning in F1, it's only about mastering the laws of physics, there's no mystique in it!

What do you think of the whimsical outfits worn by your driver, Lewis Hamilton ? Do you also sometimes allow yourself some fashion whims?

Mmmh, I have to tell you what happened this summer. (He smiles.) I was in Los Angeles to visit my eldest son, who studies there. That evening, I was in a restaurant with a shirt given to me by Daniel Ricciardo, with a rather fancy design – I love his clothing line. The Mercedes photograph was there, he's an artist. He gave me Oakley glasses, 80's style, took a picture of me and posted it on our Instagram account. Susie called me immediately to tell me I looked like an idiot, that I looked like Borat... All this to say I need to accept that I am a certain age, and so I cannot wear just anything I want like Lewis does! But I try to stay young, at least in my head. And I put hydrating creams on my face, it's an advice from Lewis. I do what he tells me to...

What does Lewis represent for the Mercedes team?

Lewis has an immense place in our team. More than that : he's an integral part of it. And he's going to stay for a long time, believe me. Formula 1 is his life... And we will get that eighth title together!

#i promise there's a reason i'm tagging daniel in this and i'm not crossposting #f1 #lewis hamilton #toto wolff #daniel ricciardo #2022 #2021 #2021 abu dhabi gp

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iceman7raikkonen · 6 months

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