Mercedes will take a harder approach to its championship fight with Red Bull after both on- and off-track incidents at the Austrian Grand Prix, says Toto Wolff.
Making two separate appeals to the stewards, Red Bull unsuccessfully protested Mercedes' use of DAS on Friday, before succeeding in a Sunday morning request that saw Lewis Hamilton handed a three-spot grid penalty for failing to slow for yellows in the last stanza of qualifying.
Additionally, Hamilton was handed a five-second penalty in the race for his lap 61 collision with Alexander Albon, with Wolff asked after the race about the 'level of political aggression' the energy drinks outfit seemed to employ.
"I found that the protest on Friday was actually fair play," he started. "But not on Sunday, so I recognise that. And fair enough. If you want to have a clarification, you can do that."
"Coming back on Sunday morning, turning around a decision from yesterday, if you have new evidence, that is what the rules allow, and as I said before, you have to take that on the chin.
"I think that in the race, putting all these things together, in the race the penalty was too harsh. But coming back to your questions, the gloves are off."
Victors in Austria with Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes will be looking to make it a second-straight win at the Red Bull Ring when the Styrian GP takes place this weekend.
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