Silverstone — Formula One champions Mercedes launched their 2018 car on Thursday with team boss Toto Wolff hoping it proves less temperamental than the last one and admitting he would like to attack it with a chainsaw. The Austrian, whose team have won the last four championships and are favourites for a fifth with Lewis Hamilton, is no fan of the mandatory new "halo" head protection device. "I’m not impressed with the whole [halo] thing," Wolff said at a chilly Silverstone circuit after Finnish driver Valtteri Bottas had given the silver W09 its track debut. "And if you give me a chainsaw, I would take it off." Wolff, whose team were early supporters of the halo concept, said driver safety was a key consideration but there needed to be a better solution. "What we have implemented is aesthetically not appealing and we need to really tackle that and come up with a solution that simply looks better. It’s a massive weight on top of the car, you screw up the centre of gravity massively ...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.