“Leaving Melbourne in a better state than we arrived,” Toto Wolff “optimistic” after Mercedes’ strong outing in Australian GP
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George Russell
Toto Wolff the Mercedes team Principal has recently given his opinion on the Mercedes outing in Australia and has deemed it as being a positive one for the Brackley-based Mercedes F1 team.
The Australian adventure did not start on the best of notes for the silver arrows as the team struggled to break into the top 10 during practice, however, when it came to Qualifying they were back at their level best and finished the Qualifying session in P5 and P6 for the team.
During the Australian GP Hamilton was the victim of bad timing when it came to the second safety car but his partner George Russell on the other hand got lucky and was able to land his W13 in P3 after Max Verstappen bowed out of the race with a mechanical issue. Hamilton finished 4th for the team making the Australian adventure a positive one for the team.
Toto Wolff has stressed that a lot of things were learned during the GP and has also admitted that they have got loads of work to do if they are to catch up with Red Bull and Ferrari.
While talking about the silver arrows Toto Wolff said, “We are leaving Melbourne in a better state than when we arrived- more lessons learned, more data to analyze, and more points on the board.”
“Clearly we haven’t got the pace yet to challenge Ferrari and Red Bull but we know where we need to seek performance.”
“One factor that leaves me very optimistic for the future is the mindset and strength of the team. Everyone in the UK, in Stuttgart, and in the traveling race team is pulling together every ounce of effort we have to tackle the performance gaps with determination and deep hunger.”
“Seeing Lewis and George perform at an exceptionally high-level today with a tool that is clearly not on the pace of the leaders is another example of the spirit of this team.”
Toto Wolff has stressed that they are optimistic yet don’t want to get ahead of themselves
“We are optimistic yet realistic on the timeline for improvement and the advantage our competitors have, but P3 and P4 help us leave Australia with a good feeling.”
“Both drivers deserved the podium today, Lewis was unlucky with the timing of the Safety Car but the partnership between the two and how they work with one another epitomizes the overall spirit of the team.”
“Mercedes’ trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin re-emphasized that the team does not have the pace to contend with Ferrari or Red Bull.”
“So, the Australian Grand Prix was another case of damage limitation, meaning a P3 and P4 finish ticked that box nicely, added Toto Wolff.
Well done to George on his first Mercedes podium, he’s working hard to help us improve the car, and whilst we’ve not got the pace right now that he would hope for, the podium is some reward for his efforts,” said Shovlin.
“Lewis lost out with the timing of the Safety Car, he’d managed to put Sergio [Perez] under pressure in that first stint and we exited from the stop ahead of him. But ultimately, we don’t have the underlying car pace to race them, even if our degradation was probably a little better.”
“At this stage of the championship, we’re focused on just two things, damage limitation, and learning. In both regards this has been a successful weekend but we know we have a lot to do, Charles [Leclerc] was in another world today so it’s likely a long road ahead but we’re not short of opportunities to find lap time around the car.”
Toto Wolff has stressed that they are looking to maximize the opportunities that they are getting and going to get in the future till the time they are able to produce a W13 that would be able to challenge the Ferrari and Red Bull Formula One team.
Till that time it is all about damage limitation for the Brackley-based Mercedes team.
Also Read: “Safety car completely ruined the strategy,” Kevin Magnussen “bummed” after Australian GP exploits
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Rishabh Negi
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