Toto Wolff's Lewis Hamilton “shelf life” comment was “taken out of context”

Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff says a remark he made about Lewis Hamilton was “taken a little bit out of context”.

In a new book titled Inside Mercedes F1: Life in the Fast Lane, team principal Wolff said he believes “everyone has a shelf life” when opening up about Hamilton’s shock decision to complete a blockbuster switch to Ferrari.

Those comments were perceived by some to be a suggestion that seven-time world champion Hamilton, now 39, may be past his prime as he prepares to leave Mercedes at the end of the season.

But speaking to BBC Radio 4 ahead of the Las Vegas Grand Prix, Wolff insisted that was not what he meant.

“What I was referring to is that, all of us, we age, whether it is in being in a car or on a pitch or as a manager or an entrepreneur,” he explained.

“And this is what I’m trying to do with myself, to understand am I going from great to good, because good is not in Formula 1 any more.

“Contrary to my own self-assessment, I think we see with Lewis that he’s very much there when the car is right and we haven’t been able to give him that car for him to perform best. And that is a frustration that we equally have in the team and for himself.

“But he’s very sharp. He’s different to when he was a 20-year-old, that’s certainly clear, but his experience and his racecraft is tremendous.”

Hamilton has won two grands prix this season but is enduring a difficult end to his illustrious stint with Mercedes, the team with whom he has won six of his seven world titles.

Mercedes have decided to give Hamilton’s vacant seat to their 18-year-old protege and Formula 2 star Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who will partner George Russell in 2025.