Mercedes secured its best qualifying result of the 2024 season so far as Lewis Hamilton put his W15 in the front row of the grid alongside Lando Norris. Despite the good result, Toto Wolff was evidently left unimpressed by his strategist, who made a critical error in the second part of qualifying that cost George Russell a chance at the top-10 shootout.

The track conditions changed during the second part of qualifying, as rain was predicted to hit the track in the final few minutes. And so, the teams wanted to get the cars out for a second run as soon as possible. However, many cars got held up in the pitlane as they made their way to the track, which led to a loss of tire temperature, making it difficult to attack the wet track on intermediate rubber.

Red Bull, on the other hand, played the situation smartly. They left their cars in the garage with the electric tire warmer on while others were struggling to get out on the track. This was the main reason George Russell got eliminated in SQ2 by three-hundredths of a second to local hero Zhou Guanyu.

After qualifying, Toto Wolff voiced his frustration with the team’s strategy, particularly their decision to queue up early in the session. “I’m upset,“ Wolff said. “Today it was all about the correct tire preparation. Our car is so critical when it comes to this issue. I’m angry that we sent our drivers out too early in the SQ2. We would have been better off waiting in the garage, even with the risk of rain coming earlier.”

While unhappy with one side of the garage, Wolff didn’t miss out on praising his other driver, Lewis Hamilton, for claiming the first row on the grid.

Toto Wolff emphasized the importance of getting the tire temperature right

Speaking to Sky Sports F1, Toto Wolff explained how they were struggling to get the tires working in the right window in the first and second parts of qualifying. According to him, Hamilton had to abort the first flying lap in SQ3 to return for a new set of rubber. However, the team made some key changes to the tires for his final run.

“Obviously, the driving is most important in the wet. It shows that it’s about tire preparation,“ Wolff said about Hamilton’s final lap. “We did the right thing on the final run. The tires were in a sweet spot combined with a great drive, which made the time.” Speaking of Hamilton’s aborted lap, Wolff added, “That was on purpose. We changed the specs of the tires and played around with the pressure.”

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Speaking about the team’s chances in Saturday’s race, Toto Wolff said that they should be competitive enough in dry conditions to fight with the McLarens, however, he felt it would be difficult to stop the charge from the Red Bulls. Can Lewis Hamilton maintain his second position in the Sprint Race tomorrow? Share your predictions in the comments below.