Nobody was hired or fired

George Russell says Toto Wolff’s refusal to change Mercedes during the difficult years of the ground effect era is a big reason the team is back on top of Formula 1.

The Brackley outfit sealed its ninth constructors’ title at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix on Sunday, its first since the end of its run of eight in a row in 2021. From 2022 to 2025, it went four seasons with little success as it struggled to overcome the challenges of the ground effect cars.

Speaking to media, Russell said the team had remained trusting in its people despite teh sudden drop in performance.

“We have been through a lot over those years. It’s been extremely tough times,” he said. “But I think something I admire a lot about Toto’s leadership is that the people we have today are the same people who were there during the glory years, and they’re the same people who went through the difficulties during 2022 to 2025. Nobody was hired or fired.

“Credit to everybody in the team, but huge credit to Toto for that loyalty and belief in the people, even when times were tough.”

Wolff himself was asked about stability of the team after the race at Interlagos, with the Austrian chief also pointing to the lack of staff turnover.

Stability was “certainly a factor”, he said, “but we have also many people that have joined us recently, and I think what I would like to choose as a word is safety. You know, we are not a hire and fire organisation.

Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes, Toto Wolff, Mercedes

Photo by: Alex Bierens de Haan / Getty Images

“We provide a culture and an environment where you can thrive, where you’re allowed to make mistakes, where you can speak up. And over the long term, I believe if you want to be successful, not over a period of a few years, but over many, many decades, this is what you need to be able to kind of ingrain in the team.”

He also admitted those years had been harder to live through than the results suggest. Look at the results and you’ll see the team finishing second in two of those seasons, but it was a challenging time for the squad.

“It wasn’t that bad at all when you look at the sheer numbers, but it felt not good,” Wolff said. “And the resilience of the team, the people that held together in those tough times, is a factor, I think.”

Russell, who joined the team in 2022, has been through all of it, His 2026 campaign has been very difficult as he watched team-mate Kimi Antonelli win the championship. He is now third in the championship, 17 points behind Max Verstappen with three races left.

Wolff said on Sunday that the constructors’ title belonged to Russell as much as anyone: “we owe it to him”.

We want your opinion!

– The Motorsport.com Team