Wolff relieved to win ‘most difficult’ F1 championship yet

Mercedes Formula 1 chief Toto Wolff felt relieved to have won the team’s “most difficult” championship yet after wrapping up the constructors’ title last Sunday in Brazil.

After seeing Lewis Hamilton clinch the drivers’ championship in Mexico last month, Mercedes managed to follow suit by claiming its fifth consecutive constructors’ crown in Brazil with one race to spare this year.

Brazil marked the latest point in a season that Mercedes had won the team’s title after facing significant pressure from Ferrari throughout the year, making the success a relief for Wolff.

“Yes, it was the most difficult, and that’s why the relief now is the most I’ve ever felt,” Wolff said following Hamilton’s race in in Brazil last Sunday.

“We had such a horrible race today, with the perfect end result with Lewis winning and us winning the constructors’ championship. But I can tell you mid-race, we had the information power unit failure imminent on Lewis’ car, and the guys in the background and the HPP guys fixed it.

“God knows how you can fix hardware that is just about to break and make the car finish. That race was just a nightmare until the chequered flag came down. And everything broke loose.”

Mercedes’ fifth straight title success saw it surpass the benchmarks set by both Red Bull (2010-13) and McLaren (1988-91), leaving only Ferrari (1999-2004) with a longer winning streak in F1.

“Being able to win a fifth consecutive championship is something we wouldn’t have dreamt of six years ago. In our wildest dreams that wouldn’t have come to my mind,” Wolff said.

“Equalling a Ferrari record that seemed unachievable is something I feel so grateful and fortunate to be in this team.

“I can remember before I joined Formula 1 those Ferrari years and Jean at the helm and Michael and many others that contributed to the team’s success. That was something that I really looked up to and admired, and us having achieved that, you just have to say a thousand times thank you to all the team members.

“Generally we need to feel grateful to be in that fortunate position."