Latest news with #TotoWolff
Daily Mirror
11 hours ago
- Automotive
- Daily Mirror
Toto Wolff sparks fresh row after Max Verstappen comments following Spanish GP
In the unexpected Formula 1 beef of the season, Mercedes boss Toto Wolff finds himself the enemy of taxi drivers in major Italian cities after his comments about Max Verstappen after the Spanish Grand Prix Move over Christian Horner, Toto Wolff has a new mortal enemy – Italian taxi drivers. Cabbies in the capital Rome are upset with the Mercedes chief after his rather unflattering comments about them as he reacted to Max Verstappen's road rage in Barcelona. The Dutchman furiously rammed into George Russell during Sunday's Spanish Grand Prix, landing himself a penalty which dropped him to 10th place. And it was when giving his view on the incident that Wolff angered taxi drivers in Italy. Speaking to the Italian arm of Sky Sports after the race, he said of the Verstappen incident: "This is road rage, like the taxi drivers in Rome or Naples." He went on to add: "There's a lot of aggression in the centre of Rome and Naples, without rules." There has been no real reaction from cabbies in Naples, but their Roman counterparts are unhappy with the Mercedes boss. "Wolff's joke? Maybe it would be better for him to focus on [the performance] of his own team," taxi cooperative 3570 president Loreno Bittarelli told Corriere della Sera. Another unnamed taxi driver told the Italian newspaper: "We are better than F1 drivers, they wouldn't last an hour in the traffic of the capital. I would like to see those drivers drive like us among construction sites, traffic, scooters, golf carts. Rome is a jungle these days, not Formula 1 tracks." And Nicola Di Giacobbe, from taxi union Filt-Cgil, responded by mocking Mercedes who have not been as performant in recent years compared to their dominant era between 2014 and 2021. "We drive like a Mercedes, as it goes 30 miles per hour like us," he quipped. Verstappen has publicly admitted fault for his petulant act, while Red Bull team principal Horner said the Dutchman has apologised privately to his colleagues. Russell, responded to being hit by saying it was a "shame" that a four-time F1 champion is also capable of such moments of madness. Later analysing what had happened while speaking to reporters, Wolff pointed at a mentality which is often present among elite sports stars, particularly those who often come in for public criticism. The Austrian said: "There's a pattern that I've recognised with the great ones, whether it's in motor racing or in other sports. You just need to have the world against you, and then you perform at the highest possible level. "That's why, sometimes, these greats don't recognise that, actually, the world is not against you, it's just you who has made a mistake, or you've screwed up. We haven't seen any of these moments with Max for many years now. I know 2021, that happened, but I don't know where it comes from."
The Guardian
a day ago
- Lifestyle
- The Guardian
Rome's taxi drivers rev up criticism of Wolff after being likened to Verstappen
Rome taxi drivers are in uproar at the suggestion they drive as badly as mad Max Verstappen, with some challenging Formula One drivers to navigate the traffic and potholes of the Italian capital as skilfully as they do. Verstappen, a four-time F1 champion, was issued with a penalty on Sunday after crashing into George Russell's Mercedes in the Spanish Grand Prix. Responding to questions about the incident from an Italian journalist, Toto Wolff, the Mercedes F1 principal, said: 'This is road rage, like the taxi drivers in Rome or Naples.' The journalist tried to defend his country's drivers, saying: 'We have improved a lot in Italy.' Wolff said: 'There's a lot of aggression in the centre of Rome and Naples, without rules.' While the remarks appear to have been shrugged off by taxi drivers in Naples, their counterparts in Rome, who in recent years have had to contend with wayward electric scooter riders, omnipresent construction sites and tourists being shown around in golf buggies, were outraged. 'Maybe it would be better if Wolff focused on [the performance] of his own team,' Loreno Bittarelli, president of Rome's largest taxi cooperative, told Corriere della Sera newspaper. Nicola Di Giacobbe, from the taxi union, Filt-Cgil, joked: 'We drive like a Mercedes since it only goes 30 miles an hour, just like us.' However, Di Giacobbe conceded that Rome has serious problems when it comes to traffic congestion and rule-flouting, making mobility in the city 'a no man's land'. Roberto, a taxi driver with 40 years' experience, told Corriere: 'We are the best at driving in the chaotic traffic of this city. We are more patient and expert than the average driver. This city has gotten worse in recent years – now it takes 30 minutes to go two kilometres.' Fellow tax driver, Alessandro, referred to Wolff's comments as 'a banal cliche'. 'We are the ones who are first in not having accidents, otherwise we would lose our working day,' he said. 'I would like to see Formula One drivers manoeuvring around construction sites, scooters and golf carts the way we do. Rome is now a jungle, not a Formula One track.'
The Independent
a day ago
- Automotive
- The Independent
Toto Wolff baffled by Max Verstappen after ‘incomprehensible' ram into George Russell
Toto Wolff was somewhat baffled after Max Verstappen drove deliberately into George Russell in the Spanish Grand Prix, calling the whole situation 'incomprehensible.' Verstappen was given a 10-second time penalty by the stewards, demoting him from fifth to tenth, for ramming into Russell in the closing stages of Sunday's race in Barcelona. Verstappen was also given three penalty points on his licence, meaning he is one point away from a race ban. Mercedes boss Wolff, who has made no secret of his past interest in signing four-time F1 world champion Verstappen for the Silver Arrows, was confused by the situation in which the Dutchman was originally told by his engineer to allow Russell through. 'So I just heard actually that Max had the call to let him past, right?' Wolff said. 'We were under the impression in the race that he had a problem with the car, and that's why he was so slow getting out of [turn] four. 'I mean, if it was road rage, which I can't imagine, because it was too obvious, that is not good. But the thing is I don't know what he aimed for. 'Did he want to let George past, and immediately re-pass? Put the car, George the car ahead, and then like the old DRS games, letting him past at the right way? 'Or… for me, it's just incomprehensible. But again, I don't know exactly what the motivations were and I don't want to judge on it and say this was road rage, etc. Let's see what his arguments are. It wasn't nice.' As shown by his 11 penalty points, Verstappen has in recent times squabbled aggressively with cars on track, with notable incidents involving Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri last season. Further back, Verstappen was involved in numerous controversial incidents with Lewis Hamilton during the pair's memorable title battle in 2021. 'There's a pattern that the great ones, whether it's in motor racing or in other sports, you just need to have the world against you, and then perform at the highest possible levels,' Wolff added. 'And that's why sometimes these greats don't recognize that actually the world is not against you, you have made a mistake, or you have screwed up, etc etc. And we haven't seen any of these moments with Max for many years now. 'The year 2021, that happened, and I don't know where it comes from.'
The Herald
27-05-2025
- Business
- The Herald
Monaco's magic fades as Formula 1 seeks answers
"I think that's what you guys enjoy watching the most," he said. "And 99% of the other people in Monaco are here sipping champagne on the yacht, so they don't care." Red Bull principal Christian Horner pointed to the changes around the harbour over the years - the building and land taken back from the sea - and felt it was time to tweak a layout first raced in 1929. "I think everything has to move with the times, ultimately, doesn't it?," he said. "It's an iconic, historic circuit that, if you look at how Monaco has changed and how much land they've reclaimed [from the sea] in the 72 appearances here, I don't think you would need to maybe do too much. "There needs to be one area that you can have an overtake." Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff said maybe a solution could be found by making a tweak to the regulations rather than asking Monaco to change. "This is such great entertainment. We had full grandstands. There are spectators everywhere on the terraces and on the boat. Lots of spectacle, wining and dining," said the Austrian. "Saturday is the day the sport comes alive. On Sunday we tried something. It didn't work and maybe for next year we need to find some regulations where maybe we need to define a maximum lap time, so this backing off didn't happen. "For the sport, for the Sundays itself, we can do better and we can come up with something."
CNA
26-05-2025
- Automotive
- CNA
Albon buys Russell dinner after Monaco strategy block
MONACO :Williams driver Alex Albon paid a price for keeping George Russell out of the points in Sunday's Monaco Grand Prix - the bill for dinner with his Mercedes friend and rival. Russell finished 11th, behind Albon in ninth and Williams' Carlos Sainz in 10th. The Williams drivers used strategy, driving comparatively slowly and swapping positions to create gaps and allow each other time to pit without losing places on a track where overtaking is practically impossible. Russell, who had been one of only four drivers to score in every race this season, said Albon would be paying for dinner. Albon then posted a photograph on Instagram of the pair together and him holding up the bill with the caption "You're welcome". Russell collected a drive through penalty for cutting the chicane to get ahead of Albon, frustrated at being unable to pass any other way. "The strategy was for Kimi (Antonelli) and I to help each other out and gain positions throughout the race. Unfortunately, Williams and Racing Bulls opted for the same strategy, and it left us without any real options," he said. Mercedes boss Toto Wolff revealed that Williams principal James Vowles, who used to work with him, had texted to apologise. "I'm sorry. We had no choice given what happened ahead'," said Vowles in the message, read out by Wolff. "I answered 'we know'," said the Austrian. "James is one of my guys, and I don't want to sound patronising, because he's making a career as a team principal, and he's doing really well," he added. Racing Bulls had Isack Hadjar finish sixth and Liam Lawson eighth after the New Zealander held up traffic and allowed his French teammate to build up a lead without fear of being overtaken.
