Lewis Hamilton’s run of form which has put him on the brink of a fifth Formula 1 title is proof that he is simply “a class act”, his Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has claimed.
The Briton needs to outscore his nearest challenger Sebastian Vettel by more than eight points to wrap up the championship this weekend in Austin, a circuit he has won at five times, including the past four.
And while much of the attention has been on the apparent failings by Sebastian and his Ferrari team, Wolff insists beating the Scuderia hasn’t been as easy as it appeared.
“While we didn’t have the fastest car in the summer, we’ve seen the performance swing in our favour recently; however, it is closer than it looked in recent races,” the Austrian said in his pre-race preview.
“Ferrari have a strong car and they will keep on pushing until the very last corner in Abu Dhabi. They have been worthy opponents in the past 17 races and we have no reason to believe that this will change in the next four; just like us, they will fight fiercely for every point and position.”
Instead, it is the performances of his own drivers, that Toto thinks should be of greater focus.
“Two 1-2s in a row also show how well both drivers are performing. With six race victories in the last seven races, Lewis has shown what a class act he is,” he continued.
“Both on and off the track he is more complete than ever before, showing commanding performance in the car and challenging the entire team to perform to higher levels at the same time.”
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One thing that the Mercedes chief has also been keen to stress is while the championship may now seem a foregone conclusion, it is still too early to celebrate.
“The battle is far from over, so we approach Austin the same way as every other race: take it one step at a time, focus on our job and make sure we bring performance and reliability to the track,” he said.
“The Circuit of the Americas has been a good track for us ever since it was introduced in the F1 calendar, but past results have no impact on the current championship.
“Everyone in the team knows that we cannot take anything for granted, so we will be as diligent as ever, keep our heads down and work hard to get a good result in Texas.”
