Despite favorable Australian Grand Prix projections and ample try with the radical zero sidepod concept, Toto Wolff would prefer to side with Red Bull. As the Mercedes boss already informed his wish, it’s just a matter of time before his team amplifies the obligatory changes.
Earlier, Wolff made it clear that his prime task is to make the challenger faster. For that, if he has to take Red Bull’s way, he wouldn’t bother or “care.” This comes after the Brackley-based team received an enormous reality check in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.
After last year’s disappointment, the stakes were higher than ever. With huge expectations behind their back, the Silver Arrows returned to their black challengers hoping for a radical change.
However, things remained as it was or turned even worse with Aston Martin coming up as the new competitor. As the season began, the Bahrain International Circuit gave the eight-time champions its first hit, followed by an unimproved Jeddah Corniche Circuit race.
Change is necessary, according to Wolff
According to the Austrian executive, a major overhaul of the W14 is very important. Given it’s so far off the pace as compared to its competitors, a radical change is the need of the hour now, even if that means shamelessly copying the Milton-Keynes-based team’s work.
The Chief Technical Officer at Mercedes, Mike Elliott, has hinted that the team has already started working on it. With a few changes, W14 will be visible in the upcoming Australian GP and then in the Azerbaijan GP.
Elliott said the engineers are looking at the aerodynamics, at the sidepod, at the floor, and working on reducing the drag. There is a lot of goodness to come through the architectural changes, believes the Mercedes honcho.
What’s next for Mercedes?
After the talks of required changes, things started working out decently for the Brackley-based team. According to Wolff, the signs he saw back at the factory were promising.
He added that the team needs to adopt the changes step by step and shouldn’t get carried away until seeing the W14 perform on the track. A slight improvement might prove to be a significant factor, given the field is extremely tight after the defending champions.
Furthermore, Toto Wolff also hopes to close the gap with Red Bull in the coming days. But for now, his target will be to beat Aston Martin and Ferrari and be the second-best team on the grid.
What about George Russell and Lewis Hamilton?
Lewis Hamilton has earlier revealed that the team didn’t pay heed to his concerns regarding the new challenger. Moreover, he also said that he doesn’t feel connected to the car this time around.
With rumors of him moving away from the team, things look risky for the German team, as the seven-time world champion is still to renew his contract. However, he said he wants to stay on the team, but nothing has been finalized as yet.
As for George Russell, he finds the W14 a little less problematic than his teammate. Growing and bettering with the team, Russell believes in the team game and is currently sharing a jolly mood in Brackley, despite tough projections in Australia.
