Toto Wolff has cast a spotlight on the “great characteristic” Lewis Hamilton has that Mercedes will be using as a reference point in the future.

The seven-time drivers’ champion will leave the Brackley-based squad for Ferrari at the end of the F1 season, but his current team principal believes one particular area of his legacy will be passed on to George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli.

Over the Italian Grand Prix weekend, Hamilton was particularly self-critical of his performance, especially after qualifying sixth on the grid.

The 39-year-old branded the result “completely unacceptable” and “ridiculous”, whilst also underlining qualifying as a weakness of his.

When these remarks were put to Wolff after Hamilton’s drive to fifth in the grand prix, the Austrian said it was the mark of a “champion”.

“I think the great characteristic of a champion is to first look at himself and say: ‘What did I do wrong’, before looking elsewhere,” the 52-year-old told media including RacingNew365.

“And I think that’s what he’s doing, trying to analyse where he can improve, what he could have done better, and only then think where else was their performance left on the table from the team side.”

Hamilton is a ‘role model’ for Russell and Antonelli

He went on to describe the benefit this has, and will continue to have, at Mercedes – and on Russell and Antonelli.

To Wolff, that “role model” behaviour is something the team will be “referring to” long after Hamilton has left.

“He’s been very strong with that, and also as a role model for George [Russell] or even for Kimi [Antonelli],” he said.

“It’s something that is important for the team, because we will be referring to that in the future, that the greatest of all time was the most critical when it came to analysing deficits or lack of pace.”

F1 News: Lewis Hamilton Analyzes McLaren’s Mistake After Disappointing Italian GP Results

Lewis Hamilton has shared his thoughts on McLaren’s recent strategy missteps during the Italian Grand Prix, suggesting that a more measured approach could have led to a different outcome. McLaren initially showed promise, with drivers Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris leading after the first pit stops. However, an off-track incident for Norris prompted the team to switch to a two-stop strategy, allowing Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc to take the lead and ultimately win the race.

Hamilton pointed out that McLaren’s aggressive pace early on may have hurt their tire performance. He believes that if they had eased off and conserved their tires, they might have been able to secure a win with a one-stop strategy instead.

“McLaren had the pace but pushed too hard,” Hamilton explained, via Crash.net. “They were doing much too fast laps, early on. They killed their tires.

“I guess they planned for a two-stop, that’s why they were pushing so hard. If they backed off longer they could’ve made a one-stop,” Hamilton added. “I was getting the information about the times they were doing. There is no way the tires would last, at that pace. Charles did a fantastic job, well done to him.

” Hamilton finished fifth in the race, ahead of both Red Bull cars and his teammate George Russell. He noted that Mercedes had initially planned for a one-stop strategy but had to adjust due to tire degradation issues. Despite the challenges, Hamilton acknowledged Ferrari’s recent upgrades, which gave them a competitive edge over Mercedes.

“We were planning to do a one-stop but my tyres were dropping off, just trying to hold onto Carlos,” he added. “Definitely unexpected.

But they had an upgrade so it was inevitable that they would be quick compared to us. “I wish we were in the fight but onwards and upwards.” Looking ahead, Hamilton remains optimistic that Mercedes will have opportunities to improve their performance in future races, especially when they introduce their own upgrades.

He emphasized that the competition is tight, and small differences can have a significant impact on race results.

“They had an upgrade this weekend and we didn’t. That’s how it goes. There will be a race where we have an upgrade and they don’t, and we’ll be stronger, hopefully. “It is very, very fine, small margins between all of us. Unfortunately today we didn’t have the pace, and we had more deg. I could have done a one-stop but I would’ve come out in the same place.”