Mercedes boss Toto Wolff was not surprised by Lewis Hamilton’s performance in qualifying for the Malaysian Gran Prix and the near half second gap he had on title rival and teammate Nico Rosberg, but he is predicting a much closer duel in the race.
Speaking after qualifying at Sepang, “Lewis has been in a league of his own the whole weekend, so his gap to Nico was expected.”
But as for the race he explained, “I think it’s open because the pace on the long runs was not as different. We know with the current generation of the cars and the heat, tomorrow is going to be an exercise of how you make the car, the systems, the tyres, the engine and everything survive best. So I don’t think it will be flat-out for one-and-a-half hours. Everything is possible. The start plays a big role.”
In Singapore two weeks ago Rosberg out-qualified Hamilton by nearly three quarters of a second, this weekend in Malaysia the pendulum appears to have swung back to Hamilton’s side of the garage.
“The more we come to the end of this season and as close as it is between the two of them, there is a lot at stake. You’re right, particularly in Malaysia, where we haven’t been able to win the race last year, means we could secure the constructors trophy for Petronas and the Malaysian fans would be great.
Starting from the front row, with the championship so delicately poised, memories of Hamilton and Rosberg crashing out of the Spanish Grand Prix, earlier this season on the first lap, inevitably spring to mind.
Asked if the title contenders need reminding about the rules of engagement, Wolff said, “They have had the odd moment but they know exactly about the effort in the background and obviously bringing it home in Malaysia would mean a lot to the team and Petronas and them. We have spent a week here doing activation. They know it’s very important.”
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