Wolff: Let’s keep our expectations real

Jad Mallak 1 min read

Wolff: Let's keep our expectations real

Toto Wolff, Mercedes’ boss, tried to manage expectations after his two drivers, Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, picked up second and third respectively behind Max Verstappen at the 2023 Spanish Grand Prix.

In just the second race with a heavily upgraded W14, Mercedes seem to have become the second fastest team behind Red Bull, especially in race trim, as the sport’s weekend in Barcelona showed that Aston Martin and Ferrari had no answer for the eight-time Formula 1 Constructors’ Champions.

Aston Martin haven’t brought any major updated to their AMR23 so far in 2023, so that might explain their struggles in Spain, but Ferrari have done exactly that in Barcelona, and despite that, the Red cars were never in contention during race on Sunday.

Mercedes had a slow start to their Spanish weekend, but Lewis Hamilton managed to Qualify fifth fastest, and while George Russell started the race from 12th, he managed to reach the podium after a solid drive.

Mercedes improving but still way behind Red Bull

However, the Black Arrows finished the race 24 seconds behind Max Verstappen who pitted twice for tyres, meaning they still have a long way to catch Red Bull, something Mercedes boss Toto Wolff stressed after the race.

“Let’s keep our expectations real. There’s such a long way to go in order to catch Red Bull. We just need to grind away,” Wolff told Sky Sports F1 in Sunday in Barcelona.

“It’s a good moment to see that the development direction is right,” he added. “We just need to chip away and we are really good at grinding. Once there is a setup direction and development direction, we will just go for it. We have that advantage of development time.

“Today the temperatures suited us – not too hot, not too cold. The car was in a mega window,” Wolff concluded.

Mercedes’ double podium in Barcelona, coupled with Lance Stroll’s and Fernando Alonso’s sixth and seventh positions, means that they have overtaken Aston Martin in the F1 Constructors’ Championship for second and by 18 points.