'Petty and embarrassing': Wolff slams Red Bull's protest against Russell

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has launched a scathing attack on Red Bull's decision to protest George Russell's victory at the Canadian Grand Prix, branding their actions as "petty" and "embarrassing." This strong condemnation comes after Red Bull challenged Russell's win in Montreal on Sunday, citing alleged breaches of regulations for both erratic driving and unsportsmanlike conduct behind the safety car. The protest was ultimately dismissed by the race stewards.

This isn't the first time Red Bull has targeted Russell with a post-race challenge this season. Earlier, in Miami, a similar protest alleging that the Briton had failed to sufficiently slow under yellow flags was also thrown out, despite Russell finishing a place ahead of Max Verstappen in third.

Speaking to Sky Sports at the launch of a new F1 movie in New York, Wolff expressed his disbelief and frustration. "First of all, it took team Red Bull Racing two hours before they launched the protest, so that was in their doing. You know, honestly, it's so petty and so small," Wolff stated. He recounted Red Bull's pattern of lodging and even withdrawing protests that he deemed "ridiculous" and "nonsense."

'You race, you win and you lose on track'

Wolff continued, criticizing the nature of the allegations. "They come up with some weird clauses, what they call clauses. I guess the FIA needs to look at that because it's so farfetched it was rejected." He emphasized that racing should be decided on track. "You race, you win and you lose on track. That was a fair victory for us, like so many they had in the past. And it's just embarrassing." He also suggested that Verstappen, as a "racer," would never pursue such a "trivial" protest himself.

Russell's victory in Montreal marked Mercedes' first win of the season, achieved ahead of Red Bull's four-time world champion Max Verstappen. The protest served as the latest flashpoint in a contentious series of events between Verstappen and Russell. The Red Bull driver had previously been penalized for causing a collision with Russell at the preceding 2025 Spanish Grand Prix, an incident that placed him on the brink of a race ban due to accumulated penalty points. This history fueled Russell's pre-race comments in Montreal, where he hinted at an advantage due to Verstappen's precarious penalty situation, comments that Verstappen later called "childish."

MORE FROM FANATİK

Lewis Hamilton 'devastated' after running over a groundhog in Canadian GP

Despite Wolff's strong remarks, Red Bull's team principal Christian Horner, also speaking to Sky Sports in New York, remained unrepentant. "No, absolutely not [no regrets]," Horner asserted when asked about his team's actions. "I mean, it's a team's right to do so. You know, we saw something we didn't think was quite right. You have the ability to put it in front of the stewards and so that's what we chose to do. Absolutely no regrets in that."

Regarding Verstappen's championship aspirations, Horner acknowledged the long road ahead. The Dutchman currently sits third in the driver's standings, trailing McLaren duo Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris. Horner affirmed their commitment to fighting until the end, stating, "If one person's going to do that, it's definitely going to be Max."

Russell himself downplayed the protest's significance. "I think even Max didn't know there was a protest even going on. So I don't know what was going on, what they were thinking," he told Sky Sports. He concluded that it was ultimately "a bit of a waste of everybody's time" and expressed relief that it's "over now, eyes forward."