Toto Wolff has stated that the United States Grand Prix in Austin was the best Formula 1 race of the season for Mercedes, despite Lewis Hamilton being disqualified.
The sprint format weekend ended in controversy when both Hamilton and Charles Leclerc were disqualified from the race for excessive wear on their skid blocks.
The seven-time world champion had finished in second-place prior to the ruling, with Carlos Sainz promoted up the order to the final remaining podium spot behind Max Verstappen and Lando Norris in second and third respectively.
It was a bitter pill to swallow for Hamilton and Mercedes, so it therefore raised some eyebrows when Wolff opted for Austin as the best race of the season for the Silver Arrows.
Wolff: Austin best F1 race for Mercedes
“This might sound weird because we got disqualified, but Austin” he told Mercedes’ official YouTube channel.
“We brought an upgrade package that worked, the car was performing well and we were hunting down the leader.
“You could say, ‘Well, you were disqualified for a car that was too low’, but the genuine performance was there and that was an enjoyable weekend.
“I’ve always said that I’d rather have a fast car that we haven’t tuned in the right way. And obviously, you need to finish.
“But that was the [best] weekend overall, seeing the correlation between the wind tunnel and the track was good.”
