Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff said police are investigating the source of an email sent to journalists and rival F1 teams alleging the team is “sabotaging” Lewis Hamilton‘s car.
The email said “some of us in the team” were unhappy with Mercedes’ “systematic sabotaging” of Hamilton’s car, race strategy and mental health.
The email also warned of a “dangerous course that could ultimately be life-threatening to Lewis”.
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It’s not known if the “team” is Mercedes itself, or Hamilton’s supporters, who refer themselves as Team Lewis or Team LH.
Lewis Hamilton at the Spanish Grand Prix. NurPhoto via Getty Images
Speaking to media at the Spanish Grand Prix, Wolff said he had police “inquiring” about the source, but dismissed the contents as “conspiracy theories”.
“We are researching the IP address, we are researching the phone, all of that, because online abuse in that way needs to stop,” he said.
“Lewis (has been) a part of the team for 12 years. There is a friendship, we trust each other, we want to end this on a high note, celebrate the relationship.
“If you don’t believe all that, you can believe we want to win the constructors’ world championship.
“So to all these mad people out there, (talk to) a shrink.”
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff. NurPhoto via Getty Images
Hamilton shocked F1 when he announced in February he would leave the Mercedes team with which he’s won six of his seven world championships to join Charles Leclerc at Ferrari in 2025.
Hamilton said he had not seen the email, but also dismissed the accusations.
“There are always things that can be better within a team and that comes through conversations, through communication, and that’s what we’re consistently working on,” he said.
“But we’re all in the same boat, we’re all working hard together and we all want to finish on a high.
Hamilton finished Friday practice for the Spanish Grand Prix fastest. Getty
“We owe that to our long-term relationship.”
Hamilton and teammate George Russell lie seventh and eighth in the world championship standings, seperated by only 12 points in favour of Russell.
The seven-time champion has generally been out-performed by his younger teammate for much of the season.
But almost as if to prove his car wasn’t being sabotaged, Hamilton topped the timesheets in Friday practice at the Catalunya circuit ahead of Sunday’s Spanish Grand Prix.
Qualifying begins at midnight Saturday (AEST), before the race at 11pm Sunday (AEST).