Mercedes not playing the blaming game insists Wolff

Toto Wolff was taken to task by F1 fans during a Q&A session on Twitter as the Mercedes executive elaborated once again on the team's huge Monaco strategy fail and Lewis Hamilton's subsequent loss of victory.

While Hamilton admitted the ill-fated call to pit under the safety car was a collegial decision between driver and team, Wolff ultimately absolved the driver from any responsibility .

“We told him to stay out and Lewis said 'not good' and that the tyres had lost temperature. We had one second to react and, combined with our wrong timing data, we made the mistake of calling him in.”

Toto Wolff reiterated the fact that given the data submitted to the team's interpretation, Mercedes believed it had just the right margin to call in Hamilton and mount a fresh set of super soft rubber.

"We believed we could make a free stop to cover risk of cars behind on Super Soft tyres, but unfortunately our data was wrong. You need the right balance between data and gut feeling. Our tools told us we had the gap but they were wrong."

Asked if anyone within the German outfit had been held accountable for Sunday's blunder, Wolff said this had not been the case. “Absolutely not. We're a World Championship team and we are not playing a blame game based on a single race.”

Click here for a more light-hearted take on the Monaco Grand Prix. 

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.

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