After Toto Wolff Shares His Sprint Race Concerns, Mercedes Engineer Reveals Some Motivating Prospects for COTA

Coming off the back of a pretty disappointing race weekend at Qatar, Toto Wolff had explained that sprint weekends are not really the best fit for the Mercedes W14 since the car is like a ‘diva.’ With F1 heading to the United States GP next, which will be yet another sprint race weekend, it was quite a troubling sign for the Brackley outfit. However, Mercedes’ trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin explained on the Race Debrief video that he believes that the Silver Arrows can come away with a good result at the US GP.

The Qatar GP saw Mercedes struggle during both the Sprint as well as the main race. However, the Circuit of the Americas has quite a different layout as compared to Qatar. While the Lusail International Circuit is full of fast-flowing, high-speed corners, the COTA has quite a few low-speed corners.

Toto Wolff watching his drivers go from P2 and P3 to last place and DNF after the first corner 🙃 pic.twitter.com/GgKWpQ4M4Q

— ESPN F1 (@ESPNF1) October 8, 2023

Mercedes has been pretty good when it comes to these kinds of tracks; however, the rest of the circuit, barring the few low-speed turns, suits Red Bull and McLaren more, and they would be desperate to maximize their results as well. However, Shovlin is optimistic about his own team coming away with a good result at COTA.

Andrew Shovlin is hopeful about a podium finish at the US GP

Following the Qatar GP, Andrew Shovlin responded to questions from the fans in the Race Debrief video. He was asked by one of the fans if the team managed to learn anything that would be beneficial for them at COTA.

Shovlin spoke about the differences in track layouts in Qatar and the US and explained that it’s difficult to point out exactly where they stand compared to the other teams. However, he also mentioned that the team is looking forward to fighting for a podium place at the next race.

Shovlin said, “We had a really good chance of getting both of the cars on the podium in Qatar. Hopefully, we will be fighting for the podium in Austin.” Getting a good result would be key for Mercedes as the team has their eyes set on their main goals for the season.

The main targets for Mercedes are clear

Mercedes are currently second in the Constructors championship, and with Ferrari gaining on them, the Silver Arrows would be desperate to cement their second place. Toto Wolff has already explained how much a P2 in the standings would mean for the team, as it is a sign that the team is improving from their P3 finish last year.

Moreover, with Sergio Perez having a poor run of form, Lewis Hamilton is slowly inching towards second place in the Driver’s championship. As of now, the Briton is 30 points behind Perez, and with five more races to go, overtaking the Mexican is quite a real possibility.