"PR comment; he knows that’s not true": Fans react to Toto Wolff claiming Lewis Hamilton is the best driver on the grid

Several F1 fans were left unamused after Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff claimed that Lewis Hamilton is "still the best driver on the grid."

Hamilton, a seven-time world champion, has not won a race in two years, with his last victory coming at the 2021 Saudi Arabian GP. Since the start of the new regulations in 2022, Hamilton and Mercedes have struggled to challenge Max Verstappen and Red Bull for race wins and championships.

Speaking recently to the media, including RaceFans, Wolff said that he has "no doubt" that Lewis Hamilton would fight for the title if they provided him the right car. He said:

“From Lewis’s perspective, he had a bad weekend: Fact. And I think that doesn’t do anything on him being the greatest driver in the world. If we are able to give him a car, he will be fighting for a world championship, I have no doubt,” Wolff said.

F1 fans took to social media to give their reactions, with one claiming that Wolff made a "PR comment":

"PR comment. He knows that’s not true."

A fan reacts to Toto Wolff

Here are some more reactions:

Twitter reactions to Toto Wolff

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Lewis Hamilton previews the W15 ahead of the 2024 season

The seven-time world champion recently said the team understands the new car much better than in the previous two seasons, which is why he is hopeful of being more competitive in 2024.

Speaking with BBC, Lewis Hamilton said:

“I think we understand the car so much better. They have developed great tools in the background. So, naturally, I’m hopeful. But I’m not going to hold my breath.

"You can imagine they are also nervous of making too big a change and it being the wrong one. And we have higher targets than ever before because we’ve got a massive gap to close. That makes it really tricky.”

He added:

“If you look at the Red Bull – and they have done an amazing job – from Bahrain last year, they had a bouncing issue, and they fixed it that week. And then you can imagine, if you’re trying to build a wall, they are one brick after the other, just development, development, development."

Lewis Hamilton has pinned a lot of hopes on the W15 given the progress he has seen in the wind tunnel in the last few weeks. A lot is riding on the 2024 challenger as the British driver has put faith in Mercedes, signing a two-year extension till 2025.