'This is harsh times' - Wolff defends ordering Russell to let Antonelli past

Kimi Antonelli extended his world championship lead after finishing second in the Dutch Grand Prix; George Russell was third after letting his Mercedes team-mate through in the closing stages following a team order; Mercedes boss Toto Wolff says the call was "not a difficult decision"

Mercedes chief Toto Wolff insists it was "not a difficult decision" to order George Russell to allow team-mate Kimi Antonelli past him during the Dutch Grand Prix.

Championship leader Antonelli was running second to Lando Norris with 16 laps to go when Mercedes decided to pit the Italian for fresh tyres under a virtual safety car, bringing him out in third behind Russell.

It quickly became apparent that Antonelli didn't have the pace to challenge Norris for victory, but while he soon closed up on Russell, the difficulty of overtaking at Zandvoort meant there was no guarantee the Italian would be able to cruise past his team-mate.

However, Russell was told over the radio to allow Antonelli through into second, which would leave the Brit vulnerable to losing his place on the podium to Lewis Hamilton, on fresh tyres behind him with his Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc in tow.

With the help of another VSC interruption, Russell did brilliantly to hold off Hamilton, but finishing behind Antonelli meant the gap between them at the top of the championship increased to 59 points.

Wolff told Sky Sports F1 : "We had a free stop with Kimi - a team internal free stop - and George was incredibly at the end fighting and also fending off the Ferraris, who were on a much quicker car. Was really, really exceptional.

"That (the decision) looks difficult on the outside but not on the inside. It's a situation we discussed very often, also today in the morning 'we're not going to lose time fighting with each other and have two Ferraris breathing down our neck'.

"So, it would have been the other way around exactly the same. It plays no role who is ahead in the championship or not, it's just about protecting the best possible positions."

Wolff insisted that his focus has to be on the best result for the team, rather than worrying about the feelings of his drivers.

"I don't think Antonelli was anywhere near catching Norris," Wolff added.

"It was just the safest way in terms of scoring points. You could have played maybe leaving him in the Overtake Mode and then again, you are risking too much, you have two Ferraris all over you.

"So, it was some tough calls, but they need to be done when you want to fight for the constructors' and drivers' championship.

"This is how we are operating. Both drivers know that. We avoid situations like some other teams where it's not clearly talked like this.