Wolff: W14 floor reveal by 'Cirque du Soleil' crane operator 'suboptimum'

Toto Wolff joked that the crane operator who hoisted into the air in Monaco Lewis Hamilton's Mercedes to reveal to the world the car's floor design must have worked for circus producer 'Cirque du Soleil'.

The marshals evacuated the car after Hamilton hit the barriers in the closing stages of final practice on Saturday.

But it was lifted several stories high into the air, which allowed everyone, including many photographers, to get a clear look at the W14's new underbody, one of the most closely guarded areas of any F1 car.

Wolff mocked the intervention, but the Mercedes boss was none too pleased with the reveal.

"Well, whoever performed the crane has probably worked for Cirque du Soleil," said the Austrian.

"Honestly, that I don’t even comprehend. The car was on the road. You could have put it on a truck. You’re showcasing a car to everyone in the world.

"That was suboptimum for us, to say the least."

• Read also: Hamilton caught out by 'backfiring' set-up decision

When it was pointed out to Wolff that Red Bull's dominant RB19 was also left exposed when it was lifted by a crane after Sergio Perez's crash in Q1, he said: "Checo's car was the same? I didn't see that. So they are all from Cirque du Soleil!"

"Don't thrash them [the marshals].""Everybody is doing their best and I don't want to be the team principal who lashes out at people doing their job."

Mercedes has introduced in Monaco is long-awaited new-spec W14 that features many updates, including wholesale changes to the car's sidepods and underbody.

Wolff was relieved overall by the absence of any negative feedback by Mercedes' drivers on their upgraded W14. But he nevertheless conceded that the team's results in qualifying were a mixed bag.

"Sixth and eighth is not good," he said. "Three tenths off pole with both drivers having less than positive Q3s is solid. It’s actually OK.

"With Lewis and George, if you would have put the last lap together, we would have played the top six. Maybe the top four. That’s OK."

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter