Toto Wolff believes Lewis Hamilton’s car is ‘in the best place it has been all season’ with the Mercedes chief in bullish mood ahead of the inaugural Jeddah Grand Prix in Saudi Arabia. Hamilton, 36, enters the penultimate race of the season in confident mood having won back-to-back races in Brazil and Qatar to cut his deficit to Max Verstappen, 24, by eight points. Alonso has echoed Verstappen’s argument that Hamilton’s punishment was illogical, given how the Brit easily cancelled out the grid penalty with the extra power he has gained from the new unit. After Hamilton’s stunning win at Interlagos, Verstappen said: ‘In theory Mercedes can put in a new combustion engine every Grand Prix, take five places penalty and benefit from the power boost.

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