Toto Wolff gives ‘no happiness’ verdict over Mercedes’ start to 2025

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff asserted that the Silver Arrows were not really happy with its start to the 2025 F1 season.

Toto Wolff gives ‘no happiness’ verdict over Mercedes’ start to 2025

Toto Wolff and George Russell (Via Eurosport)

Mercedes have had a quiet start to the 2025 F1 season. Unlike McLaren or Red Bull, the Silver Arrows have not been involved in the fight for race victories or even made headlines like Ferrari. Though, the Brackley-based squad has remained consistent in the first two races, team boss Toto Wolff has made it clear that the team is not satisfied with its start.

The Silver Arrows struggled in the ground-effect era since 2022, with this being a key reason for Lewis Hamilton’s switch to Ferrari. However, things have seemingly improved for Toto Wolff‘s squad this time around. Both George Russell and Kimi Antonelli have not made any complaints over the car being as difficult to drive.

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Wolff revealed that the chassis was stabler this year. He revealed that now when the team makes any change in the set-up, the results are exactly what it anticipated. Nevertheless, the Austrian billionaire asserted that this was not enough to meet the team’s goals for Formula 1.

The platform is stabler. When we turn a screw on some kind of mechanical device or wing or surface, then it does what we expected. But we have to also be realistic that it’s not where we want it to be. 

Toto Wolff said, as reported by PitDebrief

Toto Wolff declared that the Silver Arrows will simply not be happy until they’re back fighting for wins and the championship. Though, he clarified that there was no sense of entitlement towards the title within Brackley. He emphasized that the team needs to keep working hard in the exciting journey back to winning ways.

So we feel we will be happy when we start winning races and fight for championships. But there is no sense of entitlement. You have to work your way to that. This is the exciting journey that lies ahead.

Toto Wolff added

Toto Wolff pinpoints tire factor at Chinese GP

The Chinese GP was a tricky race for the entire grid. The Shanghai International Circuit is particularly hard on front tires, making it difficult for drivers to manage their stints as planned. If a driver pushes too hard at the start, their race strategy might get thrown out of the window as they would have no rubber left to keep pushing.

Zak Brown and Toto Wolff (via Planetf1)
Zak Brown and Toto Wolff (via Planetf1)

Toto Wolff asserted that the front tires were a major factor during the Shanghai weekend. As such, the Mercedes boss highlighted that drivers needed to be more careful when it came to tire management. He reckoned that this was a decisive factor, however, it leveled the playing field since all teams faced the same issue.

I think that we see that the fronts are a little bit more sensitive and you need to just handle them with care. That’s a bit of a difference, but it’s the same for everyone. 

Toto Wolff explained

Moreover, the Austrian billionaire insisted that the entire grid was still learning every race weekend. So much so, that every test becomes a massive opportunity to potentially learn from than the rest of the grid. The Mercedes boss reckoned that whichever team has a steeper learning curve in terms of tire management, would eventually come out on top.

So I think we are learning race by race, test by test, and the ones who’s going to have the fastest learning rate on how to exploit the tires is going to come out as the winner.

Toto Wolff noted

Can Mercedes fight for the 2025 title?

Mercedes finished the 2024 championship in a distant fourth behind Red Bull. The Silver Arrows has not been in contention for the title since 2022. However, Toto Wolff and his team have been working round the clock to bounce back this season. Albeit, the Brackley-based squad seems to be in no man’s land.

Oscar Piastri and George Russell
Oscar Piastri and George Russell (image via Getty)

George Russell has delivered two back-to-back podiums so far. The British driver has not been a threat to the front runners, but has rather easily managed to bring home the car without causing any drama. This allows Russell to capitalize on any errors made by drivers ahead of him without the need of taking any unnecessary risk.

On the other hand, Kimi Antonelli has managed to keep things clean and scored some decent points at the Chinese GP last weekend. The Italian driver is learning to get up to speed in Formula 1 and could find himself in a position to fight for podiums soon.

However, Mercedes still do not have a car quick enough to be a real threat to the likes of McLaren and Red Bull. As such, it remains to be seen if things change in the coming weeks.