Western Daily Press (Saturday)
Humility is the key to success for boss Wolff
LEWIS Hamilton’s Mercedes boss Toto Wolff insists he is not motor racing’s “Special One”, despite being on the verge of leading his team to another world title.
After Hamilton, 33, wrapped up the individual honours at the last round in Mexico a fortnight ago, Mercedes will become only the second team in F1 history to win five consecutive constructors’ titles – if Ferrari fail to outscore them by 13 points at tomorrow’s penultimate round of the season in Brazil.
As team principal, Wolff, 46, has been a permanent fixture in Mercedes’ almost unprecedented run of success, while Hamilton has also flourished under the Austrian’s relaxed style of leadership. In their pomp, McLaren and Red Bull both won four team titles on the trot, but only the combination of Michael Schumacher and his Ferrari boss Jean Todt claiming six on the spin will have won more in a row than the Silver Arrows.
Mercedes have not always possessed the fastest machinery this year, but, when under pressure, have cracked fewer times than their rivals.
Quite rightly, Hamilton, in probably his finest campaign, has taken the plaudits, but does Wolff feel he is worthy of the same acclaim? “The downfall of any leader in a sport’s team is when he gets carried away with his own ego,” Wolff said.
“You have seen in football that if you start to think you are the ‘Special One’, or that you are better than the others, that is the moment when you will be beaten. Humility is a superimportant factor in all of our lives, and I try to remind myself every that evening, just calm down.”
Unlike the heavy constraints placed on Hamilton at McLaren, Wolff has afforded his star driver free reign. And although he revealed the path has not always been smooth, especially at the start, he believes his decision has been vindicated.
Wolff pointed to September’s Singapore Grand Prix, a season- defining race, where Hamilton produced what he described as a “magic” lap in qualifying to take pole and the win after flying 25,000 miles around the globe to launch his Tommy Hilfiger fashion collection.
“At the start it was very difficult,” Wolff added. “Some of my marketing colleagues couldn’t comprehend that Lewis was being photographed with his Ferrari in Los Angeles, or that he was wearing different brands to ones that sponsored Mercedes.
“For me, it always came down to the performance level on track, and as long as he did that, he can lead the life he wants to live. Some drivers are into meditation, but Lewis follows his hobbies to take his mind off racing, which releases the stress.”