02/07/2025 12:50
Toto Wolff says he is "fed up" with his own explanations of the
puzzling Mercedes traits which remain unsolved. After winning in
Canada, George Russell could only manage fifth in Austria, with the
Red Bull Ring bringing out the worst characteristics of the W16, as
track temperatures approached 50 degrees Celsius. This exacerbates
Mercedes' tyre wear, as do rough track surfaces and high-speed
corners in hot conditions, with Russell explaining that the race
was worse than he feared, coming home 62 seconds behind winner
Lando Norris. The combination of smooth track surfaces and low
track temperatures has long brought out the best in Mercedes, with
the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix being the prime example as the team
dominated in a one-two finish, with similar conditions a
possibility at Silverstone this weekend. Mercedes believes it has
finally understood the puzzling traits, but Wolff has explained why
he is "fed up" with having to explain the situation. "Let me look
at the weather," Wolff joked with media, including RacingNews365,
before finding that Silverstone was forecast to be 19-20 degrees
Celsius, with a 50% possibility of rain showers. "We win," was his
immediate reaction, before going on to say: "The DNA of these cars
is incomprehensible. "You have good tracks, you have bad tracks,
and the most intelligent engineers in the world can't undo that.
"There are a few tracks where we are competitive, and Silverstone
has been one of them, and it is great because I have to wear a
pullover, and that is always good for car performance. "I am
getting fed up with my own explanations of: 'We learn and will get
better.' "It is a constant Groundhog Day, but there was something
we tried to take from Barcelona and from Montreal in how we set the
car up and put the mechanical balance, and something was clearly
wrong, but we have now ticked this box. "It would be dramatic if we
were racing for the championship, which we are not, so we will
analyse it, dig deep and go to Silverstone."
