Mercedes Boss Toto Wolff Concedes Only Way to Win the “Table of Doom” Abu Dhabi GP to Round Off a Miserable Season

Drivers will race for the final time this year as the F1 2022 season comes to an end. In a season filled with drama, lightning speed, and of course, controversies, Max Verstappen clinched his successive title whilst Red Bull won the constructor’s title. However, the race for P2 in both the WDC and the WCC is still on. Sergio Perez battles Charles Leclerc whilst Mercedes has the daunting task to overtake Ferrari.

Despite their splendid performance in Brazil, Toto Wolff has shut down any chances of a repeat in Abu Dhabi. George Russell claimed the Silver Arrows’ first win of the season whilst Lewis Hamilton earned his third P2 finish in a row. It was also Mercedes’ first 1-2 of the season.

Toto said, “First of all, we always knew that we needed to be prudent and not set our expectations based on the Brazil result”. He added, “Abu Dhabi, on our table of doom, was one of the worst tracks. Not catastrophic like the high-speed tracks but still, not ideal, and we saw that in qualifying.”

He further mentioned, “We were just way too draggy for a good qualifying time. We’re losing six-tenths on the straights and it is just not easily solved by reducing the rear wing because it is simply the aerodynamic efficiency the car is lacking.”

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Mercedes and Lewis will be hoping for a stroke of good fortune in today’s main race. They currently trail the Maranello outfit by 19 points. Lewis Hamilton will start the race in P5 whilst Russell will start just behind him in P6.

Toto Wolff claims Mick Schumacher would be a great fit at Mercedes

Haas confirmed that Mick Schumacher will not be driving for the American outfit after his contract expires this year. The German will be replaced by his compatriot, Nico Hulkenberg. However, Mercedes Boss Toto Wolff would be more than happy to have Mick as their reserve driver.

Mick has had a bittersweet season this year. He showed glimpses of his raw potential, most notably in Austria, where he defended bravely against Lewis Hamilton. However, Haas did not deem the German worthy enough to offer him a contract extension. But Mick could head straight to 8-time champions Mercedes as Toto Wolff continues to sing praises of the German driver.

“Mick is someone that has always been close to our heart because of Michael or the whole Schumacher family,” Wolff told reporters in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

He further stated, “We believe that we can look after him if the situation were to happen… but we haven’t really put pen to paper, we haven’t really come anywhere close to any terms.”

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Whether Mick decides to join Mercedes remains to be seen. But the German has previously expressed his desire to remain and fight for a seat in F1. Do you think a reserve driver role for Michael Schumacher’s son is good enough?