The Mercedes F1 team has resolved its latent design niggles to emerge as one of the front-runners this season. Team principal Toto Wolff admits that momentum is on their side after securing three wins in the last five races. However, the Austrian has warned his team to not rest on their laurels as the final 10 races of the season can pose a big challenge.
Wolff explained that while the team has unlocked potential from their package, they still need to address a few issues. He admits that the team are still not at the level where they can challenge for Grand Prix wins at every race.
Moreover, the over-design concept of the W15 is still not immune to the varied challenges posed across the F1 calendar. The 52-year-old took the example of Zandvoort to highlight how the Dutch GP layout could demand the most out of their car.
After a short break we are back! First up we have Mercedes’ Dutch Grand Prix preview, in which Toto Wolff says the team has “made good steps in improving the W15’s weaknesses” and “will continue to work hard to take more”.#F1 #MercedesAMGF1 #DutchGPhttps://t.co/9zzSoj6Cq2
— Mercedes F1 News – SilverArrows.Net (@SilverArrowsNet) August 20, 2024
Formula Passion quoted Wolff as saying, “Zandvoort is a challenging track. With its hairpin bends, high-speed sections, and narrow layout, it has an old-school feel.” Looking forward to the last 10 races of the season, the Silver Arrows’ boss is confident of making further inroads to the front of the grid with still “some ground to make up.”
Despite their mid-season form, the Silver Arrows‘ early-season struggles have put them quite some way behind their rivals in the Constructors Championship in P4. The opening seven rounds of the season saw them score only 79 points.
From the Monaco GP onwards, however, they have bagged a whopping 187 points. They have scored only 25 less than the leaders, McLaren (212).
Mercedes still has a lot to play for in 2024
While Mercedes may not be in contention to fight for the Constructors’ Championship this season because of McLaren’s remarkable form, the Silver Arrows still have a good chance of beating Ferrari to P3. As things stand, Ferrari just have a 79-point advantage over Mercedes and have been struggling to outscore the Brackley-based outfit in recent races.
F1 is BACK after the summer break
Which team will be the next GP winner of the 2024 season? pic.twitter.com/XrCaBYv16Z
— Motorsport.com (@Motorsport) August 20, 2024
Another motivation for Mercedes would be to give Lewis Hamilton a fitting finale. The #44 driver has won two of the last three races and is only 27 points off snatching P3 in the driver’s standings from his future teammate, Charles Leclerc.
While the stakes this year are lower than what Mercedes have been accustomed to in the past, their mid-season recovery speaks volumes about the position they will expect to find themselves in 2025. The team’s recent form suggests they have ironed out most of the issues with the W15, but Qualifying still remains a point of concern.
