“We’ve had it in the past with Lewis fans”: Mercedes boss Toto Wolff lashes out at claims of favouring Kimi Antonelli over George Russell
Toto Wolff has been a mentor to both George Russell and Kimi Antonelli and has overseen their progress through the junior categories to the point where they joined the team. However, there’s a marked difference in the manner in which both drivers made their way to the Mercedes driver academy.
George Russell made his way to the Mercedes driver academy by reaching out to him with a PowerPoint presentation and sharing why he would be an asset to the program. Kimi Antonelli, on the other hand, was poached by the brand when he was still karting.
At the start of the 2026 F1 season, all the momentum was on George Russell’s side. He had dominated Kimi Antonelli in his rookie season, and with Mercedes producing a car that’s capable of fighting for the title, Russell was the favorite. But what has happened in 2026 has been the exact opposite.
For George Russell, the year has been a complete disaster, as he has struggled with not only a performance deficit but also reliability issues plaguing his progress. With Kimi Antonelli now set to become the third Mercedes driver to become a world champion since the team’s return.
There has been an online faction that has accused Toto Wolff of favoritism. Talking to the media ahead of the F1 Singapore GP, Wolff did not hold back as he called these suggestions brainless. He said,
“They’re brainless, whoever thinks that. I mean, it’s completely nonsensical. We’ve had it in the past with Lewis fans. Do they think I have a button that says ‘George engine failure now,’ or disadvantaging one driver against the other, when we’re fighting for a constructor championship?”
He added,
“We’ve always had the mindset of providing everybody equal material. But I guess this is maybe where social media goes today. People hide behind their screens, and then they they lash out. There’s a lot of polarisation going on. “Sometimes I read what people write. I find it hilarious. These people really contribute to my own entertainment when they’re abusing the team. I myself, I’m Satan, I’ve heard…”
Mercedes has faced fan backlash in the past as well
This is not the first time Mercedes has faced online backlash from fans, as it has happened to Toto Wolff in the past as well, from Lewis Hamilton fans. In 2014, fans questioned if there was favoritism towards Nico Rosberg over the Brit in the title fight.
The same accusations showed their ugly head once again in 2016, when Nico Rosberg was involved in an intense title battle with Lewis Hamilton. More recently, these accusations surfaced during the ground effect era, when fan mail accusing Mercedes of favoritism was leaked to the media.
When two top drivers are in the same team, such questions are always going to come to the surface, and it’s always hard to keep control over the narrative.
Toto, however, is now used to these claims, as he’s been at the helm at Mercedes for more than a decade.
