Wolff: Mercedes values will win titles

Toto Wolff believes Mercedes will win more titles in the future by sticking to its values of treating both drivers equally, following two switches of position in Hungary.

Valtteri Bottas was running third during the Hungarian Grand Prix, with Lewis Hamilton stuck behind him in fourth but unable to communicate via team radio until the second half of the race. With Hamilton saying he could attack the two Ferraris at the front of the field, the Briton also promised to give the position back to Bottas if he was allowed ahead and failed to overtake second-placed Kimi Raikkonen.

Bottas duly moved over for Hamilton, but after no further changes of position, the three-time world champion backed off massively on the final lap to return the favor, despite the close attentions of Max Verstappen. Wolff admits he was torn by the decision, with Hamilton having stood to gain three points in the drivers' championship if he remained in third.

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"Saying I wouldn't regret the decision would be very naive," Wolff said. "The truth is if you miss out on the championship by two or three points people would say it's because of Budapest and I would be first one to shoot myself in the knee, and all of us.

"Nevertheless, I think long term standing by what you say and standing by your values is going to make us win more championships – it was a tough call to make and a very difficult one, believe me.

"It was probably the most difficult call we had to make in the last five years, because we were not sure how close Max would come at the end. I am not in a happy place at the moment. If we are not fast enough at least we are sportsmanlike."

The Mercedes boss added it is important for the team to stand by its attitude to racing in order to get the most value out of the F1 project.

"We don't drive in circles because we enjoy it so much. We drive in circles because we hope that it promotes our brand and makes us sell cars, and it's a very long-term project. If you come here and you think this is what counts only, you are wrong. We have seen the backlash of decisions that were ruthless and cold blooded, and the effect it had on a brand.

"Now you could say 'Screw it, it still won them the championships, who cares, we are down in the history books,' but I don't think this is the right spin. If I come back to what I think or what the purpose of us being here is, it is doing the right things and winning in the right way. Sometimes doing it the right way and standing by your values is f***ing tough and it was [in Budapest], believe me."