The Italian GP saw Max Verstappen set a brand new record for the most consecutive number of race wins (10). However, as it turned out, not everyone was too impressed with the statistics, as Toto Wolff claimed that nobody actually cares about records like these. However, talking on the Sky Sports F1 podcast, Nico Rosberg explained that the harsh comments from Wolff were probably a result of his own team not being able to live up to his expectations.
Following Mercedes’ disappointing P5 and P6 at the Italian GP, Wolff spoke to Sky Sports F1 regarding Verstappen’s new record. He claimed that the Mercedes drivers couldn’t achieve anything like that during their peak because the Silver Arrows always had two highly competitive drivers, unlike Red Bull.
Wolff also commented that these numbers aren’t something that is too important to him, and said, “It’s for Wikipedia. Nobody reads that anyway.” The comments were not well received in the paddock with Martin Brundle claiming that he doesn’t understand this response from the Mercedes boss. Another person who doesn’t seem to agree with Wolff’s response is his own former driver Nico Rosberg.
Nico Rosberg explains Toto Wolff’s comments
Rosberg appeared on the latest episode of the Sky Sports F1 Podcast where he was joined by content creator Aldas and Matt Baker. Having formerly worked with Wolff, Rosberg was asked by Baker if Wolff’s comments are really true or did he actually care about the records.
Rosberg explained that Wolff’s comments came as a result of him being distraught about his own team’s poor result. The 2016 World Champion explained, “Finishing 5th and 6th, miles behind Ferrari and Red Bull, is not really the goal. So I think Toto is just a bit down there. And that made his answer a bit darker and not quite as gracious.”
Rosberg believes Wolff should have appreciated Max Verstappen
Rosberg then went on to comment on what Wolff should have actually said. According to him, Wolff should have appreciated the achievement and applauded the team even though Red Bull is their rival team.
He then revealed that everyone in the world cares about records, be it Toto Wolff or Max Verstappen. Rosberg pointed out that even Verstappen, who regularly claims that he doesn’t care about records, got out of the car after winning his 10th consecutive race and signed a ’10’ with his fingers.
With Formula 1 heading to Singapore next, it is expected that Verstappen will keep up his winning run as no other team has been able to come close to the Red Bull in terms of race pace. When it comes to record, Verstappen is the favorite to extend his streak and create a record that will be extremely hard to break in the future.
