The crash between Formula 1 drivers Valtteri Bottas and George Russell in the Grand Prix of Emilia Romagna could have significant negative consequences for Mercedes for the rest of the season.
The wreck of Bottas has been written off, so it will cost Mercedes a lot of money to build a new car for the Finn. “Money at the expense of upgrades, so our possibilities to improve the car are limited,” grumbled team boss Toto Wolff about the hard collision at the Imola circuit.
“This is a real setback for us, and to be honest, no fun at all. From this season onwards, we will have to deal with a cost ceiling, so depreciating a car is not something you are waiting for,” says Wolff.
Russell collided with Bottas’ Mercedes during the race at Imola with his Williams while overtaking, after which both cars flew off the track and crashed into the crash barriers. There was so much debris on the circuit that the Grand Prix was temporarily halted.
Formula 1 has set the maximum budget for racing stables this year at 145 million dollars. For Mercedes, one of the largest teams used to spending millions more on the development of the cars, that is a bit of a swallow.
The team would like to make upgrades because Red Bull seems to have a better car this season. Max Verstappen won the race at Imola on Sunday.
