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Despite the fact that the season has still been successful in terms of points and podium places, the car of Mercedes currently third on the grid. The pace of Red Bull and Ferrariteam boss Toto Wolff also knows, the W13 cannot handle it.
This is mainly due to porpoising, forcing Mercedes to sacrifice performance and speed of the car to limit bouncing on straights. Wolff knows that the pace of Ferrari and Red Bull is currently too much to ask. “We know we don’t have the pace of the Ferraris and Red Bulls right now. But we’re working hard to narrow their advantage, and it’s great to see everyone in the factories working together to achieve this.”
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Mercedes continues to work
The Easter weekend, in which there was no race in Formula 1, has been used by Mercedes to work hard and process more information about the car. However, Wolff believes that solving the problems will be time-consuming. “Over the Easter weekend, a lot of hard work has gone into the factory to improve the car and get it ready for the next race, and that shows the team’s commitment to change the situation. Of course we have to be realistic, it will take time to make the improvements we want, but we learn as much as we can from each race and find ways to move us forward.”
Wolff curious about Imola
Last season Mercedes also did not have a fantastic weekend in Imola. Valtteri Botts dropped out and Lewis Hamilton zag Max Verstappen win the race. In 2022, Wolff is especially curious about how the cars of this generation will perform on the track in Italy. “Now we look ahead to Imola and the first Sprint event of the season. It is a historic, old-fashioned track with a challenging layout that the drivers really enjoy. Qualifying is important due to the narrow track, while the twisty nature of the really puts cars to the test. We’re excited to see how the 2022 machines will handle Imola.”
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