Success favoured Mercedes and their star driver Lewis Hamilton, the 2021 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix may nicely have ended with two DNFs for the World Champions and crew boss Toto Wolff is aware of it.
A lot has been written about that epic race at Imola and all of the shenanigans all of the drivers had been as much as in making an attempt circumstances and a no-nonsense race observe.
Within the wake of the spray generated that day, Hamilton managed to recuperate the beached Black Arrows and from ninth on the stoppage, he recovered to complete second behind Crimson Bull’s Max Verstappen means forward within the distance.
Valtteri Bottas was not lucky in any respect, his race ended when his Mercedes and the Williams of George Russell collided to launch a myriad of numerous headlines. Ultimately, it was zero factors haul from the Finn.
Wolff admitted his crew rode their luck, and Imola was a case of harm limitation when issues might need been a lot worse: “To return away main each Championships virtually felt like a get out of jail free card, as a result of our rivals didn’t maximise the chance we gave them.
“And it simply proves what a difficult season we’ve got forward of us and the way rapidly issues can flip round in Formulation 1. Imola was a loopy race and the type of grand prix that lives lengthy within the reminiscence: there have been so many ups and downs and there have been a couple of moments the place it felt like we wouldn’t rating any factors in any respect.
“It was a rollercoaster of feelings, from the frustration of Valtteri’s scary accident to the joys of Lewis’ restoration drive,” added Wolff.
Final yr Mercedes had been untouchable at Portimao, Hamilton taking pole by a tenth from Bottas with Verstappen, subsequent finest, 1 / 4 of a second adrift.
Hamilton gained the race the subsequent day by a cushty margin, 25 seconds forward of his teammate with Verstappen an additional ten seconds adrift in third.