Toto Wolff was quizzed about the upcoming Las Vegas GP and his thoughts on the whole affair. While the Mercedes boss was appreciative of the $500 million investment made by Liberty Media to make the race a reality for the fans, Wolff was not too sure about how his team would cope likening the weekend to an uncharted territory.
Wolff was quoted on X as saying, “I think it’s going to be a tremendous show for the audiences,” while talking about the $500 million extravaganza chalked out by the sport.
However, on the sporting side of things, the Austrian mogul was still in the dark given Mercedes’ wavering fortunes. “I don’t know what to expect. You can see those swings. I want to rely on the simulations at the moment. You asked me last week, and I’m, yeah, we’re going to Brazil and this is going to be awesome. And now we’re going to a track that we haven’t been even, so I don’t know.”
After a miserable weekend for the Silver Arrows in Brazil, Wolff cannot be blamed for being pessimistic. Despite promising long-run pace, the W14 of both, Lewis Hamilton and George Russell wilted in race trim. As a result, during the Sprint, Hamilton finished a sorry seventh, and during the main GP, Russell retired as Hamilton could only muster P8.
Neither of the two are happy with how the car has been performing, terming it as unpredictable and undrivable. Hamilton even went as far as saying, “Only a couple more races with this car and it’s gone, and I’ll be happy! This year, you’re just counting down the days,” as quoted by Mirror UK. Now, as we head to the iconic Vegas strip, Mercedes are tipped to suffer yet another nightmare.
Fans write Mercedes off for Las Vegas GP after trouble at Interlagos
Formula 1 Twitter has been swarming with comments about Mercedes’ fortunes at the Las Vegas GP. X has been flooded with fan comments and analyses about the inherent defects of the W14 and how badly it will cope with the debutant’s characteristics.
Well, it’s easier said than done when you’re sitting at home. However, given how Mercedes suffered with straight-line speed last Sunday, the endless straights on the Vegas strip will surely be nothing short of a nightmare for the duo of Hamilton and Russell to drive. What’s more, track temperatures are expected to be higher than at Interlagos. Hence, the Silver Arrows’ problems with tire management are going to get apparent, too. Fans have been harping on these exact variables.
Mercedes also needs to shift their focus onto Ferrari. With only 2 more races to go this season, the Silver Arrows need to preserve their 20-point lead if they want to secure P2 in the Constructors’ championship.
