Wolff insists Mercedes' 2026 situation not comparable to 2014

Wolff was referring to the start of the turbo-hybrid era that kicked off in 2014 when Mercedes showed up with a formidable power unit from day one and went on to win eight F1 Constructors' Titles in a row.

Mercedes are tipped to deliver a competitive package once again, but Wolff has already said that he is a pessimistic person, refusing to set any high expectations.

Reflecting on the situation ahead of the 2014 F1 season and how it compared to 2026, Wolff said: "Landing in 2014, I kind of had [a good] feeling already in the winter when we were the first ones running a full car dyno.

"The engine was more reliable than it seemed with the other people. And obviously, day one testing, nobody did some laps; we did. The same on day two.

“So, it's not comparable, I would say. It's also that the grid is just much more competitive than it was in previous years," the Austrian maintained.

In addition to the existing ten teams, Cadillac will join as the 11th and will be initially powered by Ferrari. Sauber will morph into Audi. There will also be four power units: Mercedes, Honda, Ferrari, and Audi. Renault are withdrawing.

With the new regulations also affecting the chassis side, any historical trends will be irrelevant, and it would be tough to predict which chassis/power unit combination will end up being the most competitive.

"It's super difficult to predict," Wolff said, "because we set ourselves targets that we are on track to meet. But whether those targets were set ambitious enough and whether those targets have been set in the right place in terms of priorities, only the future will show."

The 2026 F1 season will kick off with a private test for the teams in Barcelona on January 26.

(Quotes from Motorsport.com)