Toto Wolff has played down the importance of Max Verstappen’s new record, claiming that such records are simply ‘for Wikipedia’ and that the lack of threat from team-mate Sergio Perez detracts from the achievement.
Verstappen fended off the threat of Ferrari duo Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc to claim his tenth successive Grand Prix victory at the historic Monza circuit on Sunday, breaking the record for the most consecutive race wins in the sport’s history.
The Dutchman moved level with fellow Red Bull legend Sebastian Vettel on nine straight victories in front of a bouncing home crowd at the Dutch Grand Prix last time out and he spoiled the Tifosi’s party this time out with another stellar driver in Italy.
Speaking to Sky Sports F1 at the Italian Grand Prix, Wolff stated: “Our situation was a little bit different because we had two guys fighting against each other within the team.
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“I don’t know if he cares about the records. It is not something that would be important for me, those numbers, it is for Wikipedia and nobody reads that anyway.”
Despite watching his Mercedes team win seven Drivers’ Championship titles, Lewis Hamilton only ever managed five consecutive Grand Prix victories during his time in the spotlight with the Silver Arrows.
This was due, in part, to the calibre of Hamilton’s team-mates with Nico Rosberg posing enough of a threat to snatch the 2016 championship, while Valtteri Bottas was a force to be reckoned with in qualifying.
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That said, it is easily possible to understate the magnitude of Verstappen’s achievement. The 25-year-old has a 145-point advantage over Perez in the championship, exercising total dominance over a driver who has a reputation for being a career-long midfielder frontrunner, able to maximise results from his package.
Speaking about his achievement, Verstappen said: “I never would have believed it was possible but we had to work for it today and that made it a lot more fun.
“We had good pace but they had a lot of top speed so it was hard to get close and get the move into Turn One so I had to force him into a mistake. Luckily it came at some point where he locked up. I tried to stay patient then just had to pick my moment.”
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