It will not be smooth, says the Mercedes head of motorsportHamilton: ‘I am more prepared now than I have ever been’

Toto Wolff, Mercedes’ head of motorsport, has told both Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg that losing the world championship in Abu Dhabi next week will not be the end of the world for either of them.

The observation is likely to fall on deaf ears but Wolff has felt compelled to move into full man-management mode ahead of the final race of the season, the double-points decider at the Yas Marina circuit, and told everyone in the team to “buckle up” for a rough ride next week.

“The aftermath is relationship management, which is important for the future,” he said. “But [in] the run-up [it] is important to maintain the balance, to maintain the respect between the two and to let it stay a respectful relationship.

“It will not be smooth. We need to buckle up and I am very much looking forward to buckling up. The ride we’ve had this season [means] so far every weekend was a challenge.”

Wolff remembers the former TV commentator Murray Walker recalling an interview with Alain Prost and Niki Lauda after their memorable title tussle in 1984. Lauda, now non-executive chairman of the Mercedes team, won by half a point. “He [Walker] remembered Alain Prost being very honourable and good. Interestingly, that guy went on to win four championships afterwards,” said Wolff, who is adamant that whoever finishes with most points would be a worthy champion. “One is going to win and one is going to lose and that says it all.”

However it is not that simple, as Wolff well knows. If Hamilton, who has won 10 races, is beaten by Rosberg, who has won five, it will be a black day not only for the British driver but the entire sport, and the credibility of Formula One will have been ruined for the sake of a cheap gimmick which will be dropped next year.

Abu Dhabi, which pays a lot of money for the privilege of staging the last race of the season, was desperate for the contest to be still be alive for the final round. With Hamilton leading the championship by only 17 points it would have gone to the end in any case, under the old rules. Now Hamilton knows he must win or come second to be sure of the prize.

He has been reminded of 2007 and 2008, when he went into the final race in Brazil leading the championship. He lost out in 2007 but famously won in 2008.

“In those two years, as far as I can remember, I definitely felt the tension more over those two weekends. I don’t remember much more, really. But I know I am more prepared now than I have ever been. I am stronger now than I was then, both mentally and physically.

“Going into this last one, I don’t think there is a special recipe for it. I just have to do what I have been doing, drive the way I have been driving in races because generally it has been good. I won’t make a mistake like I did on Sunday and if I had a better qualifying it would be good.”

Hamilton has failed five times out of 18 to get into the top two this season, but says: “What will be will be. There is no point dwelling on it. It is going to happen one way or another. All I can do is make sure I do my best over the whole weekend and the rest will follow.”

Whether this gifted but emotional figure retains that level of equanimity in the event of losing out to Rosberg remains to be seen. He knows that he should already be at least a double champion by now, though in recent years it has been his car’s deficiencies, rather than his, which have prevented him from winning another title.

Rosberg has compared their title battle this year to their karting contest in 2000 but Hamilton was having none of it. “There are zero similarities,” he said. “We were racing in go-karts and fighting for the championship and I won every race. The only difference that year was that I am pretty sure we both finished each race. We never crashed out.”

Recalling a more relaxed atmosphere between the two men, he added: “Back then we used to play Xbox or PlayStation when we got back to the room, there was nothing else. We were good friends and we would go out and go karting.”

It is difficult to see them ever being close friends again after this tumultuous season.