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“Hoping to get a good start and then play with Toto Wolff”- Throwback to Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas racing their Mercedes boss around Silverstone

Somin Bhattacharjee
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"Hoping to get a good start and then play with Toto Wolff"- Throwback to Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas racing their Mercedes boss around Silverstone

Lewis Hamilton and his former Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas took part in a race against team principal Toto Wolff around Silverstone. 

2020 was a time when Mercedes didn’t have any competition from other teams on the grid. They entered that season having won six consecutive Constructors’ and Drivers’ Titles and were on top of the world.

No one can blame the Brackley based outfit for having a race among themselves, just for fun! This took place around Silverstone circuit ahead of the start of the campaign. Bottas and Hamilton were up against Wolff, and all three of them were behind the wheel of a Mercedes-AMG GT R Coupé.

Wolff evidently looked less confident before they took to the track. “This is not my specialty,” the Austrian insisted. Nevertheless, Wolff and his two drivers set out for qualifying around the circuit.

Just like in most F1 races back then, Hamilton outqualified Bottas. The Finn set a time of 1:12.780, whereas Hamilton set a time of 1:11.610. To everyone’s surprise however, the boss wasn’t too far behind. Wolff set a lap time of 1:13.000. The Mercedes boss however, convinced them to start the race by setting up a reverse grid.

Mercedes posted the replay of this race on their YouTube channel.

Also read: “An easy way out of Mercedes issues” – Toto Wolff says Silver Arrows have a simpler way to escape their predicament

Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas ‘playing with’ Toto Wolff

Before the start of the race, Bottas talked about the strategy he and Hamilton were going to adopt. “Hoping to get a good start, and then we can play with Toto,” the now Alfa Romeo driver said.

In spite of starting the race on reverse grid, it didn’t take long for the Mercedes duo to outjump their boss on the start. Hamilton and Bottas didn’t compete with one another. Instead, they allowed their boss to get close to them, only to toy around with him furthermore.

It’s fair to say that neither driver showed their real skill behind the wheel that afternoon. They allowed Wolff to follow them closely and set up an exciting finale to the fun outing.

Bottas overtook his teammate on the final lap, taking the win and Hamilton followed him in second. Wolff, who was allowed to follow them closely behind came last out of the three drivers.

When asked about how good Wolff was, Bottas admitted that he did get good exits of some of the corners. Hamilton on the other hand trolled him by saying, “He’s very good at blocking. I’ll leave you some space, like Max.”

Also read: “The only celebrity who actually cared about F1”- Mr. Bean’s hilarious reaction to Lewis Hamilton and Felipe Massa’s crash at the Indian GP in 2011

About the author

Somin Bhattacharjee

Somin Bhattacharjee

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Formula 1 Editor Somin Bhattacharjee fell for the sport as well as Fernando Alonso on the same day — during the Spaniard’s thrilling victory at the German GP in 2010. Over the years, the passion magnified manyfold, and metamorphosed into a writing career in 2021. Though holding a bachelor's degree in marketing, Somin discovered his true calling in writing. He has penned over 2,700 articles for TheSportsRush, presenting a diverse range — news reports, opinions, and exclusives. A true Tiffosi, Somin never gives up on a chance to defend the Ferrari boys as a fan. As a sports writer though, he remains objective to the core and relishes opportunities to follow and engage in dissecting the action during races. That’s where the real thrill lies for him. Beyond the racetrack, Somin plays different sports including soccer. He enjoys exploring other sporting events and proudly supports Spanish soccer club Real Madrid.

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