MONTMELO, Spain Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff said police are investigating an email sent to motorsport journalists and Formula One teams alleging that Mercedes is sabotaging Lewis Hamilton’s performance following his decision to leave for Ferrari.
The team had “the police ask” about the recent email sent from an anonymous account, Wolff said in the Spanish Grand Prix on Friday.
The email alleges that Mercedes is intentionally trying to undermine Hamilton’s performance by compromising his car, tire strategy and mental health.
Wolff called these accusations baseless “conspiracy theories.”
“We are researching the IP address. We’re searching the phone, all of that, because online abuse like that needs to stop,” he said.
“Lewis has been part of the team for 12 years. There is a friendship, we trust each other, we want to end this with a flourish, celebrate the relationship. And if you don’t believe all this, you can believe that we want to win the constructors’ world championship. So for all you crazy people out there, see a psychiatrist.”
Hamilton surprised the F1 world in February when he announced he was leaving Mercedes for join Ferrari in 2025, thus setting an end date for a partnership that has helped him win six of his seven world championships.
Hamilton has been slightly outperformed by teammate George Russell this season. Russell is seventh in the drivers’ standings, six points ahead of Hamilton in eighth. Russell has also recorded faster qualifying times than Hamilton in eight of the nine races so far.
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