“We were nowhere”: Toto Wolff reacts after George Russell & Lewis Hamilton ensure unexpected Mercedes 1-2 in Belgium

Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff was ecstatic after the team secured an unexpected 1-2 finish in the Belgian GP. George Russell's strategy gamble helped him beat his teammate Lewis Hamilton to claim the third F1 victory of his career.

Hamilton assumed the lead early in the race, with Oscar Piastri and Charles Leclerc in the mix for the victory. Leclerc's second pit stop forced Mercedes to pit Hamilton, with Piastri following suit. Russell then took the lead and pulled off a one-stop strategy, beating all the two-stoppers to win the race.

Toto Wolff reflected on the "incredible" result for the team as they managed to beat both McLaren and Red Bull drivers. The Silver Arrows team principal emphasized that the setup changes over the weekend significantly improved their pace, which put them in the mix.

"It’s incredible. We were nowhere. We changed a few things on the car and today we’ve been clearly ahead of everyone," Wolff told Sky Sports F1.

Elaborating on Russell's strategy gamble, he explained that the team initially didn't consider a one-stop race possible. However, after being undercut by Max Verstappen and Lando Norris during the second stop, the one-stop strategy appeared to yield the same result as a two-stopper.

"We didn’t think it was possible but at a certain stage we said, let’s stay out, because we were going to finish fifth anyway, both scenarios. He stayed out and in the end he made it last," Wolff added on the strategy gamble.

Russell extended his run to 34 laps until the checkered flag after pitting on lap 10. The 26-year-old managed to hold off a charging Hamilton in the final laps, using the clean air to his advantage. While Piastri threatened to ruin the Mercedes 1-2 finish, he ultimately had to settle for a third-place finish.

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Toto Wolff elaborates on Lewis Hamilton's two-stopper strategy

After assuming the lead early in the race, Lewis Hamilton seemed on course to take his second victory of the season. However, Russell managed to outfox his competitors by deciding not to pit, having nothing to lose.

Toto Wolff explained that Hamilton’s lead put him in a different position, and the team needed to counter Charles Leclerc’s undercut. Although Russell emerged victorious with his strategy, Wolff acknowledged Hamilton's strong performance.

"I’d like to have two winners today but we had to cover Leclerc and Norris, because we would have been undercut, and that was the call. George had nothing to lose. We were P5, the one-stop and the two-stop were showing P5, so we kept him out," the 52-year-old told Sky Sports F1.

Mercedes have won three of the last four races, prompting team principal Toto Wolff to express his desire for the 2024 season to have started in Austria. However, he maintains realistic expectations, aiming to overtake Ferrari for third in the constructors' standings.