As a reason for numerous engine changes in its works and customer vehicles on the last two race weekends, Mercedes has expressed fears of engine damage in the upcoming races.
At the FIA press conference over the USGP weekend, Toto Wolff voiced his concerns about engine reliability. More recently, the team’s chief strategist James Vowles has also addressed these concerns in his latest race briefing.
Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas had to undergo an engine change at the Russian GP, followed by another at the USGP. Lewis Hamilton had an engine change at a critical point in his championship battle with Max Verstappen at the Turkish Grand Prix. The team’s tone after the Turkish weekend sounded concerns about the reliability of its engines over a long season.
Mercedes expresses DNF concerns for the remainder of the season
Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas during USGP 2021 at the Circuit of The Americas in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Mark Thompson / Getty Images)
Of the four drivers on the grid who changed their engines on the USGP weekend, three were Mercedes engines: Bottas, Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin) and George Russell (Williams).
When asked about the reliability problems during the press conference, Mercedes team boss Wolff said:
“I think you can see that we are reliably suffering this year. We’re going to the sixth engine – I think it’s for Valtteri – and we didn’t choose it, on the contrary, we’re trying to really get the problems under control and we didn’t fully understand it. ”WHAT THE LAST ROUND!!! 
So close for Lewis, but not quite enough … that was ALL the accusation !! 
SO close for Lewis, but not quite enough …
The Austrian further explained the problem, saying:
“I think we’re now one step closer, so it’s not always that we’re literally always easy with the engines. We are committed to supplying all customers, and that is not trivial. “
Without going into the problem with their engines, Wolff said:
“I don’t want to reveal what it is for obvious reasons, but it’s always a problem. I think if you look at Monza for example, Valtteri had to start from the back and we lose points along the way. ”Brilliant charge in the final laps, but it wasn’t enough in the end.
“It’s not the weekend we were hoping for, but we know there are still plenty of opportunities.”
The fight continues, says the boss. 
” We thought we’d sniffed the win with Lewis and he made a brilliant comeback in the last few laps but it wasn’t enough in the end. “It’s not the weekend we were hoping for, but we know there are still many opportunities to come. ” The fight continues, says the boss. https://t.co/zHCEui4LUc
The Mercedes boss added:
“We try to improve every year, and this year we’ve got to a point where it has cost us points. For the past seven or eight years, that mindset has brought us races and championships, so we would have hoped for fewer penalties and fewer engines, but this year has hit us really hard. “
After the Turkish GP, Wolff had mentioned that despite the critical phase in the drivers’ championship, he did not ignore the possibility of replacing another engine at Hamilton. The reigning world champion is 12 points behind title leader Max Verstappen, another engine penalty could make it difficult to close this gap in the next races.
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<p>In a similar tone of voice in Austin, the Mercedes CEO said:</p>
<p>“I can’t say if we’re going to take one and what the percentage is, but obviously the risk is still there and what is difficult to assess is that you will forestall the situation and take another fine and what? Hit – or do you really want to let it go and then possibly risk a DNF – and that’s a discussion going on right now and we haven’t come to the right answers yet. “</p>
<p>Explaining the engine changes, Mercedes chief strategist Vowles said:</p>
<p>“The reason for this is that we weigh performance and reliability until the end of the season. A race failure, be it due to a chassis or power unit failure, would be catastrophic for the championship and that’s why we can do it in the best possible way by the end of the year. “</p>
<p>In this week’s debrief, we talk to James about overcuts, underercuts, one-stop races, engine change penalties, and more! <img src=)
In this week’s debrief, we talk to James about overcuts, underercuts, one-stop races, engine change penalties, and more! 
Vowles explained Bottas’ three penalties in four races:
“In the case of Valtteri, that meant taking another ICE to make sure we had the absolute best compromise. Whether it has improved [Bottas’] Achievement, yes, a small amount, but it’s more about balance over the rest of the season than an event. “
Mercedes driver Bottas switched to his sixth ICE (Internal Combustion Engine) in Austin, Hamilton is currently in fifth place. Believing the engine change was necessary for future races, Vowles says:
“This change, painful as it was at the Austin Grand Prix, will actually pay off in the next few races.”
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While Red Bull Racing replaced Verstappen’s fourth engine in Russia, the team insists it may not need to replace engines any further this season. As Mercedes tries to fix its engine problems, its championship could be threatened with five races remaining in the season.
Edited by Sandeep Banerjee
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