“We knew that Max was OK” – Mercedes boss claims team had no remorse over Max Verstappen-Lewis Hamilton incident at Silverstone

Mercedes chief Toto Wolff claims the team did not have much remorse over Lewis Hamilton’s collision with Max Verstappen at Silverstone. The Austrian team boss was speaking in a Sky Sports documentary called ‘The Duel’.

Wolff said they knew the Dutchman was alright and believed their celebrations of winning the British Grand Prix were justified. Reflecting upon the Silverstone clash between Hamilton and Verstappen, the Silver Arrows team principal said:

“If you’re sitting in a hospital shaken by a big impact, you’re not going to understand that the other team is cheering for the driver but it was his home race. It was a massive swing to our advantage in terms of points. And we knew that Max was OK.”

Wolff believes their celebrations after Lewis Hamilton won the British GP were justified because it was his home race. The Mercedes team boss believes it was hard for the Dutchman to understand the emotions of the victory after suffering an impact from the collision.

The clash between the two 2021 championship protagonists at Silverstone was the moment when the gloves came off. Both Red Bull and Christian Horner were upset with Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes as they celebrated a victory when Verstappen suffered a 51G impact from the collision and was getting checked into a hospital. The Milton Keynes-based team’s boss revealed the Dutchman was knocked out after the crash.

Mercedes team boss reveals not having any remorse for Max Verstappen after he collided with Lewis Hamilton

The Austrian team principal of the Brackley-based team went further to suggest that there was little remorse for Max Verstappen after his clash with Lewis Hamilton.

Wolff revealed that there were many corners where the Briton had left him with enough space, however, choosing to defend at Copse was the Dutchman’s choice. Indirectly, the Mercedes chief blamed the collision on the Dutchman, suggesting he could have avoided defending in that corner.

Looking back at the moment, the Mercedes boss said:

“There wasn’t a lot of feeling of remorse on our side. Because Lewis had given up corners much more often before, where he shouldn’t have.”

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The clash between the two championship contenders at Silverstone created a fissure between the two drivers and teams. The fractious relationship played out on and off-track for the second half of the season, resulting in one of the most intensely fought championships in the history of the sport.