Mercedes is supported by a ‘fast’ car: We’ve got everything to play for

Following Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas’ performances in Saturday’s Sprint Qualifying, Toto Wolff believes “anything is possible” at the Brazilian Grand Prix.

After a “encouraging” Sprint Qualifying in Sao Paulo, Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff believes that “all is to play for” at the Brazilian Grand Prix.

Lewis Hamilton stormed through the field from the back of the grid to finish in fifth place after being disqualified for an illegal DRS opening, while Valtteri Bottas won the race and took pole position.

Hamilton, on the other hand, will start Sunday’s Grand Prix from 10th position due to a five-place grid penalty for a new Internal Combustion Engine.

“After the 60 minutes of racing, with Valtteri out there disappearing in the front, like he did in Turkey, and Lewis coming back, [it] is the feeling that I enjoy the most at the moment,” Wolff told media.

“Now we know that it can swing from one day to the other. But Saturday reminded me why I love this sport. Everything is possible.

“I think we have a good package. We have a car that is fast and everything to play for [on Sunday].”

Tyre degradation not an issue for Mercedes

Although Hamilton lost two points to Verstappen on Saturday, Bottas’ pole position has given Mercedes a two-point lead over Red Bull in the Constructors’ Championship.

At Interlagos, Red Bull was anticipated to be the ones to defeat, but Hamilton’s pace has been good all weekend, and Wolff is especially pleased that overtaking was possible.

“I believe we have a good car here,” said Wolff, reflecting on the weekend so far.

“We’ve seen over 24 laps [that we] definitely didn’t suffer with the tyres. [In the race] that is a different game again, because it’s going to be much hotter than it was [on Saturday].

“But at least it’s encouraging to see that we can overtake. The wings were checked again, they were OK.

“[Hamilton’s] not starting from 20th, but he’s starting from 10th, and Valtteri is right up there on pole and is certainly going to race for the victory. So at least it’s more encouraging than it looked [before Sprint Qualifying].”

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