- Mercedes
Rosberg-Hamilton relationship changed quickly - Wolff
Toto Wolff says the relationship between childhood friends Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton went from amicable to "very intense" as soon as the pair realised they would be world title rivals this season.
Much has been made of the history between Rosberg and Hamilton, who were teenage karting team-mates, and how their relationship has developed during an intense and controversial 2014 title campaign. Wolff believes both drivers have struggled with the notion that they are up against a rival with exactly the same machinery and says there was a noticeable change in the pair's relationship this year.
"It has changed from, let's say, an almost amicable relationship at the beginning of the season to a very intense moment, where it was almost like realising these two are enemies competing for the world title," Wolff told the BBC. "It's also a learning process. These boys have been calibrated their whole life that their main priority is to win the drivers' championship in F1.
"And here they go - they are in the same car, competing against each other for that trophy and one is going to win and one is going to fail. This is a new experience for them, a difficult experience maybe."
Wolff is still proud of Mercedes' commitment to allowing its drivers to race one another but says both world titles are still the priority.
"It is so intense and we are breaking new ground in letting the boys race in the way we do. So we are bound to make mistakes. I think that's the way it should be. You can be a politician or you can express your frustration. I don't know which one is right or wrong, but as a matter of fact it doesn't matter because if we lose the two championships with the cars we have, we have failed. We would be a laughing stock - and rightly so."
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