Label: mercedes

Wolf will miss the Suzuka race

Wolf will miss the Suzuka race

formula 1
Mercedes confirmed that Toto Wolf will not be present in the team's garage at the next race in Suzuka. This one is scheduled in 14 days. The decision should have been made before the start of this season and is not related to the extremely demanding introduction to the new season. Wolf will miss the Suzuka race for the second year after being forced to do so last year due to knee surgery. His role in the garage was taken over by Bradley Lord. After zero in Australia, the Mercedes team is currently fourth in the constructors' standings. The Aston Martin team has just one point less. Because of the below-average results, Wolf has received many questions about whether he will step down as team manager, but for now, at least, he is not thinking about it. "I don't think it would be right for me to leave the team now. If you might know someone who could
Wolf: I can't see the light at the end of the tunnel right now

Wolf: I can't see the light at the end of the tunnel right now

formula 1
Toto Wolf was understandably very angry after Mercedes' zero in today's race. Lewis Hamilton retired in the seventeenth lap due to a powertrain failure. George Russell, however, retired after crashing into the guard rail on the penultimate lap of the race. After a race in which, even before the departure of both drivers, it was again clearly visible that they did not have the pace to fight with the best, an angry Wolf gave his view on the current situation in which his team is. "There were moments in the race when we were really slow. George had a pretty good pace in the finish. But it's still far from what we want." "When Alonso was running on medium hard tires halfway through the race, George couldn't get close to him. His lap times were almost a second slower than McLaren's. V for
Alonso receives a high penalty for dangerous driving

Alonso receives a high penalty for dangerous driving

formula 1
Fernando Alonso caused George Russell's last-lap crash by dangerous driving at the Australian Grand Prix, according to stewards. In the final laps of the race, the Aston Martin driver defended himself from Russell's attacks by slowing down and accelerating on braking at turn six, which, according to the commissioners, caused the Briton's accident. "I don't want to blame Alonso for anything, because we looked at the telemetry of the last few laps, but in the lap when George had the accident, he braked at a point where he had not in the previous five laps," said Toto Wolff, boss of the Mercedes team, after the race. was left with no points after the technical problems of Lewis Hamilton and the accident of Russell in the race. The Spaniard finished the race in sixth place, but after a penalty of 20 seconds, he dropped to eighth place, one place each
Hamilton after worst start of career: I'm trying to stay positive

Hamilton after worst start of career: I'm trying to stay positive

formula 1
Lewis Hamilton gave his view on the race, which ended in the seventeenth lap due to problems with his car. The Briton, who has not stepped on the top step of the podium for more than two years, started today's race only from eleventh place. That's why Mercedes decided to try a slightly different tactic. Unlike most competitors, it started on the softest version of Pirelli tires. By the end of the seventh lap, when he went to change tires, he gained two places. Ten laps later, he retired while driving in eleventh place. "Everything happened very quickly. There was nothing to indicate a possible problem with the power unit. It's a shame that it happened so soon. A different strategy from the competitors would have given me a chance to gain some places." "This is the worst
Hamilton blamed the wind for his poor performance

Hamilton blamed the wind for his poor performance

formula 1
Lewis Hamilton will want to forget today's qualifications as soon as possible after he was eliminated in the second part and will start tomorrow's race only from the eleventh starting position. He blamed his poor performance on the wind, which was said to have a major impact on the already unstable Mercedes racing car. After the unconvincing performances in Friday's free practice sessions, the Briton was much more confident this morning in the third free practice session and therefore optimistically expected the qualifications. But here the story was completely different. When the checkered flag signaled the end of the second leg, he was ninth, but Yuki Tsunoda and Lance Stroll managed to improve their times and pushed him out of the top ten. "I felt very good during the third training session, because we were right next to the best, that's why I did
Piastri: The fight with Hamilton revealed our weaknesses

Piastri: The fight with Hamilton revealed our weaknesses

formula 1
Oscar Piastri finished the race in Jeddah in a solid fourth place, but was a bit disappointed at the end, as he spent most of the race directly behind Lewis Hamiton, who was unable to overtake him in any way. "Salvation" came only in the thirty-sixth lap, when the Briton drove to change tires. At the beginning of the weekend, Mclaren emphasized the lack of final speed compared to their competitors. This was very evident in the race when Piastri, despite the help of the DRS system, was unable to overtake Hamilton in any way on the start-finish straight. When asked if the fight with Hamilton was fun, he replied: "I wouldn't say fun is the right word. Because I couldn't overtake him in any way, I got a little nervous. I just didn't have enough speed on the straight to pass him ug
Russell: Mercedes is getting slower

Russell: Mercedes is getting slower

formula 1
George Russell believes Mercedes are getting slower during the race weekend. In both races this year, in free practice, the Mercedes drivers showed competitive speed with the best, but then it started to disappear in qualifying and the race. Thus, Russell set the second time in the second practice in Saudi Arabia, and in qualifying he won the seventh starting place and then finished the race only one place higher, and this place he gained at the expense of the unfortunate tactics of Lando Norris. But the Brit believes that the difference is not because the rivals are getting faster during the weekend, but because Mercedes is getting slower. "We are still trying to understand our car, which showed its true speed at times during these two race weekends. In the first practice, we were immediately the fastest and always among
Hamilton: We need big changes

Hamilton: We need big changes

formula 1
Lewis Hamilton said after the race in Jeddah, which he finished in a modest ninth place, that his racing car needs big changes if they want to fight for the top places. During the race, he had the feeling that he was racing in a completely different category due to the not uncompetitive racing car. The Brit didn't even risk taking a different strategy. After Lanca Stroll's accident in the opening section, the safety car entered the track. Most racers took advantage of this for a quick tire change. At Mercedes, they decided to split the strategy and unlike Russell, Hamilton was not called in for a tire change. This could have paid off if the safety car had re-entered the track at the end of the race, which did not happen. "The racing car is relatively good in slow and medium-fast turns
Wolf: I would go hand in hand for Verstappen

Wolf: I would go hand in hand for Verstappen

formula 1
Toto Wolf makes no secret of his desire to bring Max Verstappen to the Mercedes team as a replacement for Lewis Hamilton. The Dutchman's future at Red Bull became somewhat uncertain when he publicly admitted on Friday after free practice in Jeddah that he could leave the team if they sack Helmut Marko. On Saturday, Marko admitted that he intends to stay with the Austrian team after supposedly positive talks with Red Bull CEO Oliver Mintzlaff. Nevertheless, Wolf admitted to journalists in Jeddah this weekend that Mercedes are still interested in Verstappen, who would replace Lewis Hamilton in the team. "I'd really like to have Max in my team. I'd do anything for it. I'd go hand in hand. But first we need to improve the car to be competitive
Hamilton: We were slow because of the bouncing

Hamilton: We were slow because of the bouncing

formula 1
Lewis Hamilton finished eighth in qualifying for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, but he says he could have finished higher if he hadn't been bothered by the bounce of his car. In free practice on Thursday, Hamilton was not satisfied with the car, mainly because it lacked stability, so they decided to install a bigger rear spoiler on the W15 car. The Briton praised the better stability, but due to the larger wing, he was losing speed on the straights, which would have almost cost him a place at the back. The seven-time world champion advanced to Q3 just 0.036 seconds ahead of Ferrari's reserve driver, rookie Olli Bearman, who replaces Carlos Sainz. Hamilton finished qualifying 0.144 seconds behind teammate George Russell, but he was not satisfied with the outcome: "In