Toto Wolff, winner of the Turkish Grand Prix, thinks Valtteri Bottas maintains his form and can be “very helpful” to Lewis Hamilton in his title defense.
With six races remaining, Hamilton is engaged in a thrilling duel for the Drivers’ Championship with Max Verstappen, with the Mercedes driver behind the Red Bull driver by six points.
Verstappen reclaimed the lead last time out in Turkey, finishing second to Hamilton in fifth position, in a season that has seen the pendulum swing between the two.
It could have been a lot worse for Verstappen if his teammate Bottas hadn’t won the race, denying him a further seven points.
Wolff feels Bottas has a big role to play in this year’s title race.
“His form was unbelievable in Turkey,” Wolff said in Austin.
“For me it is really a 10 out of 10, and he seemed pretty good today. Comfortable, at ease with the car.
“If he can continue to maintain his pace that is very helpful, not only for the Constructors’ Championship but also for Lewis’ championship because he is taking points away from the other guys.”
Hamilton led the championship early this year until losing it to Verstappen in Monaco. The momentum swings between the two protagonists began, and many anticipate they will continue until the season’s final lap in Abu Dhabi.
There are still 159 points up for grabs with six races left, but a DNF for either Hamilton or Verstappen could see the other take a significant lead.
“I think it will [go down to the wire], because the swings of points are not massive,” Wolff said.
“Goes one direction and then the other way.
“I’ve said before I think that the DNFs are the killer for this championship because you can’t… It’s very difficult to recover a 25-point loss, so you need to minimise the mistakes.
“It’s exciting to see.”
But while Hamilton trails in the Drivers’ standings, Mercedes are 36 points ahead in the Constructors’.
The Brackley squad does not have a comfortable lead, according to Wolff.
The Mercedes motorsport boss said: “Well, comfortable is the wrong word but I think there is a little bit of a bigger gap, that is solid but that could go very much to the end, and is an important championship for us as Mercedes.”
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