(Getty Images)
Mercedes have endured a difficult start to the 2022 Formula 1 season having only accumulated 77 points from the first four races leaving them 47 points behind leading team Ferrari. Despite their struggles, Team Principal Toto Wolff is impressed with the “positive” relationship developing between the new driving partnership of George Russell and Lewis Hamilton. Russell is in his first year as a full-time Mercedes driver and has settled brilliantly. He currently sits fourth in the drivers’ championship and is 21 points ahead of his seven-time world champion teammate.
The Emilia Romagna Grand Prix was particularly tough for Hamilton who finished outside the top 10 in P13 but Russell managed to fight his way up to P4 and rescue some points for Mercedes after a strenuous weekend for the team. Speaking after the race Wolff praised the way the two drivers were working together but admitted having regrets that Mercedes haven’t yet given them a car to fight for wins this season.
“Yes, I’m very impressed with how [George has] settled in, how professionally and analytically he helps to assess the situation,” he said. “The combination is one of the very few highlights I have at the moment on our journey – how well the two of them work together, with no friction; on the contrary, [they’re] very productive and positive for the team.
“And I couldn’t be happier with the driver line-up; in that respect I think we have the two best drivers, maybe two of the three best drivers and they deserve a car and a power unit that fights at the front rather than them being lapped. That’s not what any of them deserve.”
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Carlos Sainz ‘hustling’ to get to grips with new Ferrari car
Carlos Sainz has a new two-year deal under his belt at Ferrari and two podium finishes for the season already, but things aren’t all going swimmingly for the Spaniard.
He says there’s still a bit of a struggle to get used to the new car and have it handling to his liking, but he’s working hard to overcome errors.
“I’m glad I look from the outside comfortable. On the inside, it’s not comfortable yet. I’m still not as smooth as I’d like to be, and mistakes like [in qualifying] prove that maybe I’m still not 100% happy with the car and understanding it fully. But I’m hustling out there,” he said.
“I’m trying my best to get it up to my liking, to change my driving – and mistakes are going to come when you’re challenging yourself like that.
“There are no magic weapons. You have to do something from your side as a driver, and I’m having to do techniques and driving that I’m not used to doing in order to be fast with this car.”
Sainz is third in the driver standings on 54 points, behind teammate Charles Leclerc and reigning champion Max Verstappen.
(AFP via Getty Images)
Karl Matchett3 May 2022 09:30
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VW ‘don’t really need Formula One’ but Porsche and Audi plans will go ahead, says CEO
The chief executive of Volkswagen has said that the car manufacturer “does not need” Formula 1 despite confirming that Porsche and Audi will join the grid.
Both brands sit under the Volkswagen umbrella and are set to involve themselves in F1 from 2026.
Herbert Diess, who chairs the board of the Wolfsburg-based automotive giants, has suggested that while F1 is not a priority for his organization, they recognize the potential for growth as motorsport’s popularity surges.
The 63-year-old confirmed that both Audi and Porsche have begun to develop engines.
“We certainly have other priorities strategically,” Diess said at an event in Wolfsburg.
“It’s not necessarily motorsport, but our cars have to be technically up to date, we have to be able to drive autonomously, we need the software capabilities, we need batteries for our cars. We have enough to do and we don’t really need to do Formula 1.”
For more from VW and why their brands will still be venturing into the sport:
Karl Matchett3 May 2022 09:15
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George Russell ‘will soon get on Lewis Hamilton’s nerves’
Russell has achieved a top-five finish in each of the first four races of the 2022 Formula 1 season, his first as a contracted Mercedes driver after an off-season move from Williams.
The 24-year-old leads new teammate Hamilton by 21 points with both drivers struggling to battle performance problems with the new W13 car.
“Russell was one of the outstanding drivers at Imola. Like Lando Norris and Max Verstappen.”
Karl Matchett3 May 2022 08:54
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Mercedes could hand Lewis Hamilton and George Russell upgrades at Miami GP
The team have faced significant performance issues early in the 2022 Formula 1 season, with both drivers struggling to match the speed of Red Bull and Ferrari.
Russell is the only driver to finish in the top five at every race so far, but is yet to challenge for grand prix victory, while Hamilton was lapped by Max Verstappen during the course of the Dutchman’s cruise to victory at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
Michael Jones3 May 2022 08:20
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Car problems mean F1 title already ‘out of reach’ for Mercedes
This year’s F1 world championships already looks out of reach for Mercedes, says two-time winner Mika Hakkinen.
The Silver Arrows have been off the pace set by Ferrari and Red Bull in the opening four races of the 2022 season as the continue to struggle under the FIA’s new regulations.
Following the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix last weekend, George Russell sits fourth in the drivers’ standings, 37 points adrift of leader Charles Leclerc.
Seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton is even further off the pace having picked up just 28 points so far this season.
Meanwhile in the constructors’ championship, Mercedes are down in third and already have a 47-point deficit to make up on Ferrari.
Michael Jones3 May 2022 08:11
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Wolff praises Hamilton and Russell partnership
Following a difficult Emilia Romagna Grand Prix Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff praised the growing partnership between drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell as ‘one of the very few highlights’ of the season so far. The last race was particularly tough for Hamilton who only managed a P13 finish but teammate Russell took advantage of Charles Leclerc’s late crash to take fourth place and collect some points for the team.
Speaking after the race Wolff praised the way the two drivers were working together but admitted having regrets that Mercedes havn’t yet given them a car to fight for wins this season.
“Yes, I’m very impressed with how [George has] settled in, how professionally and analytically he helps to assess the situation,” he said. “The combination is one of the very few highlights I have at the moment on our journey – how well the two of them work together, with no friction; on the contrary, [they’re] very productive and positive for the team.
“And I couldn’t be happier with the driver line-up; in that respect I think we have the two best drivers, maybe two of the three best drivers and they deserve a car and a power unit that fights at the front rather than them being lapped. That’s not what any of them deserve.”
He also defended Hamilton’s less than stellar performances this season calling the seven-time champion “the best driver in the world” and adding that the issue was with the Mercedes W13 itself, rather than its driver.
“Well, you know in a way I have to protect him here. It’s not his low. It’s the low of the car performance,” said Wolff. “We know that he is a seven-time world champion. He caught up last year, him and us the team caught up and nearly fought for the championship.
“The guy is the best driver in the world, and he’s just not having a machine and equipment underneath him to be able to execute… In a way I think it’s irrelevant if you come in eighth or 12th or 15th, it doesn’ t matter; it’s all bad. But the real stars recover.
“There are none out there of the really great ones that come into my mind that didn’t have certain moments in their career where things didn’t run properly, and that is the case now with him since a long time. He’s going to help the team to sort things out, we are sticking together through good and bad times and today [at Imola] was certainly a very bad day.”
Michael Jones3 May 2022 08:03
