Mercedes boss Toto Wolff reveals Williams team principal sent an apology to him during the F1 Monaco GP

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff shared an interesting insight on James Vowles, his F1 colleague from Williams. Speaking about Vowles, Wolff stated that the latter apologized to him during the 2025 Monaco GP at the Circuit de Monaco.

The recently concluded Monaco race was a topsy-turvy outing for Mercedes and Williams. It was a race where both the Williams drivers ended up with points, whereas the Mercedes stars came home with nothing.

Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz picked up three valuable points for the British team with P9 and P10. Meanwhile, George Russell, who is well known for his race day, came home in P11. Kimi Antonelli, the other Silver Arrows driver, ended his day in P18.

Vowles seemed to have sent the 'apology' to Wolff after his drivers — Albon and Sainz—held off Russell for the majority of the race. While it's how the strategy works at such a narrow circuit, his drivers could not have done better to keep the #63 driver at bay.

"He sent me a text in the race saying, 'I'm sorry'," Wolff stated as per Autosport on Instagram.

Russell started his race from P14 after a woeful qualifying on Saturday, where he suffered from an electric issue. As a result, his race was done since he was racing in a circuit where qualifying is of immense importance.

In addition to this, Russell received a 20-second drive-through penalty for overtaking Albon by cutting the chicane. The team informed him to give the place back, but Russell insisted on taking the penalty instead.

However, the British driver gained three places, thanks to a quick and brilliant strategy, but was stuck in P11 for the majority of the race. The reason behind this was Carlos Sainz, who kept him at bay to safeguard his and his teammate Albon's positions within the Top 10.

In the end, Russell's disappointing outing came to an end, and one could understand why James Vowles sent an apology to his former boss at the Silver Arrows, Toto Wolff.

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Toto Wolff summed up Mercedes dreadful Monaco GP outing: "Not satisfying in itself"

Following the conclusion of the 2025 Monaco GP at the Circuit de Monaco, Toto Wolff shared his thoughts. Speaking to the media in the post-race interview, here's what the Silver Arrows boss said:

George Russell from the UK drives the (63) Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team F1 W16 E Performance Mercedes during the Formula 1 TAG Heuer Gran Premio di Monaco - Source: Getty

"You know at the end, you are playing for points, that is not satisfying in itself. A Monaco race, you are winning or losing on Saturday."

"This is where it is relevant from a racing point of view, where we haven't done well yesterday. We tried to consider which play variants that exist, and there wasn't any," he further added.

After the Monaco GP, the eighth race of the season, Mercedes is in P2 in the Constructors' Championship with 147 points. However, their advantage has drastically come down as Red Bull, with 143 points, and Ferrari, with 142 points, are breathing down their neck.