It takes two!

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff threatened to impose ‘team orders’ on Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg, however unpopular the move, after yet another collision between the battling Formula One title rivals in Austria on Sunday.

The team mates have clashed three times in the last five races - in Spain, Canada and the Red Bull Ring - as their championship duel heats up. Wolff said something had to change.

“It’s unpopular, it makes me puke, because I like to see them race, but if the racing is not possible without contact that’s the consequence,” he said of a move that would force the drivers to hold position after a given point of the race.

On Sunday, the pair collided on the last lap as triple world champion Hamilton tried to seize the lead by going around the outside of the German.

The Briton ended up the winner while Rosberg dropped to fourth and saw his lead slashed to 11 points with 12 rounds remaining.

In Spain in May their collision came on the opening lap and led to both retiring.

“In Barcelona I was much more at ease with it,” said Wolff. “We had gone 30 races without collision, it was clear it was eventually going to happen, it wiped out both cars and from my naive thinking I thought to myself: ‘OK, they’ve learnt the lesson, seen what the consequences are and it’s not going to happen anymore’. But, here we go, it happens again.

“So the only consequence is to look at all the options and one option is to freeze the order at a certain stage of the race.”

Such a move would be deeply unpopular with fans that yearn for more of the drama seen over the closing laps in Austria as Hamilton reeled in Rosberg before making the fateful move.

Mercedes have taken pride in letting their drivers’ race, telling them only to keep it clean and avoid contact, and Wolff said any decision would not be taken lightly.

“I have to cool down and in the next couple of days figure it out. Next thing I’m going to do is put my head in a bucket of ice,” said the Austrian. “We will make the decision irrespective of what they (the drivers) say. It could go in either direction. We need to avoid contact between the two cars whatever the decision is. Everything’s on the table.”

Rosberg set himself at odds with Formula One stewards and his Mercedes team mate. The German, who had led before he and Hamilton drove into each other on the last lap, was handed a 10-second penalty - which did not change the finish order - for causing the collision.

He made clear to reporters, before the officials’ decision, that he considered Hamilton to blame for their third coming together in five races. “I’m just extremely frustrated because I had the win in the bag,” said Rosberg, who limped home.

“The collision completely took me by surprise. I didn’t expect Lewis to turn in. I can say that for sure I didn’t drive into anybody, because I had the car fully under control at all times. Apparently he said in a TV interview that I was in his blind spot so maybe that is why he turned in.”

Rosberg’s comments contrasted with those of some TV analysts who laid the blame at his door and even questioned whether there was some deliberate intent as he struggled with brake problems and Hamilton closed in.

Hamilton, who has now won three races to Rosberg’s five this season, did little to defuse the situation. “I don’t want to get into any negatives,” said the Briton, who was booed and whistled on the podium, when asked whether he felt there had been any deliberate action.

“I just want to focus on the fact that I won today. I have got to enjoy that. You guys can see it, you can see the manoeuvre, how it evolved, and you can take your own opinion from that. For sure, I have my own opinion on it but would rather keep it to myself.”

While the team’s non-executive chairman Niki Lauda found fault with Rosberg, telling reporters that ‘Lewis did nothing wrong’, team boss Toto Wolff made clear he was angry with both his drivers.

“It’s not black and white,” he added. “Nico was with a car that was handicapped, trying to brake late and not on the line that was the normal line, and Lewis came from outside where first contact was made. It takes two to make contact.”