After taking a big hit on the head, like Ferrari, at Spa, the Mercedes F1 team hopes to find a level of performance closer to that of Red Bull, the current benchmark, on the Zandvoort circuit this weekend.
Toto Wolff, who suffered the blow in Belgium, wants to bounce back and speak more positively… to motivate his troops.
« Belgium was a tough weekend for us as a team, but those weekends are the ones that really motivate you and make you dig deeper. »
« There were such big extremes throughout the weekend, differences in pace on Saturday and Sunday, a tough first lap for Lewis and George finally battling for a podium. »
« We worked hard to understand our struggles at Spa and luckily we don’t have long to wait before we can use and maximize those learnings. What will make the difference for the rest of this season is speed and the efficiency with which we can continue to learn, to have a better performance this year and especially the next one. »
In the learnings of Spa, there is above all a discovery according to the director of Mercedes F1.
« We didn’t have the right aero setup for this track but it was a necessary evil to use the tires well. We were asked if our engine, now frozen until 2025 is up to the task and I can assure you that yes. »
« Our power unit is absolutely good. We’ve seen everyone is pretty much within five horsepower behind. »
« The direction we took, with the pilots for the race, was like putting a wing of an Airbus 380 up in the back. It obviously caused a lot of drag. »
So it’s time for Zandvoort to start again on a good basis, on the lands of Max Verstappen.
« The Dutch Grand Prix is next, and it was a real party atmosphere last year. It’s an interesting, old school track with fast corners, banked corners and lots of character. We are so excited to be back out there and taking on the challenges of this circuit with our ground effect F1 this time. »
