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Toto Wolff has emphasised Mercedes' struggle as they head into the 2024 season and aim to achieve the gains needed to catch incumbent world champions Red Bull, calling their chances "against the odds."
Mercedes won eight straight constructors' titles from 2014 to 2021, as well as seven world titles during that time, but have underperformed so far in F1's latest ground effect era. Red Bull has followed in their dominant footsteps, winning both World Championships in 2022 and the double in 2023, triumphing 21 of the 22 races staged - while Mercedes failed to win for the first time since 2011. Mercedes had to settle for second place in the constructors' standings following a close battle with Ferrari, and team president Toto Wolff admitted to having mixed feelings after last weekend's season finale in Abu Dhabi. "You know, when you win P2, it reminds you that you lost P1. I think we need to take it on the chin, be humble about it, and consider today as a good day. Nevertheless, there is a Mount Everest to climb in order to catch up with Red Bull," Wolff was quoted as saying by Formula 1. "I have no doubt that McLaren is going to be right in the mix next year, maybe Aston Martin, maybe others, and we must leave no stone unturned [at Mercedes' factories] in Brixworth and in Brackley. As tough as it is to be reminded that it's just P2, it's also a great, great opportunity to come back and drive for the stars," he added. Wolff also highlighted how Mercedes has gone "back to the drawing board" for the 2024 season in order to revamp a Max Verstappen/Red Bull combination that has shattered innumerable records and rewritten F1 history. "Red Bull started into these regulations in 2022 with a massive advantage and was able to maintain it, and you have to have a lot of respect for their achievement on the engineering side and the driver," the Austrian commented. "Beating them under the current regulations is against the odds, it's clear, but at the same time, we've seen with McLaren, where an update unlocked a second of lap time, or AlphaTauri coming strong at the end, and Aston Martin over the winter - there is a key to unlock dramatically more performance," he added. "I think us... assessing it in an honest way that this car is never going to be good enough to fight for championships - we've taken the decision that we're going to go back to the drawing board and come up with something new next year. But Mount Everest is in front of us," Wolff stated. (ANI)
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