Wolff: It’s clear we have taken a good step forward over the winter

In the Mercedes preview of the Sprint Grand Prix in Shanghai this weekend, Wolff said: “We leave Australia with many positives but also a healthy dose of realism as to where we stand in the pecking order. The W16 provided a stable platform for the drivers, was less prone to swings in performance relative to the conditions than its predecessor.

"At moments, showed strong enough pace to challenge at the front. It’s clear we have taken a good step forward over the winter. Our focus is now on unlocking more potential and adding performance. We are excited for that challenge," added the Mercedes boss.

The Silver Arrows secured their first podium of the season in Melbourne, with George Russell finishing third behind McLaren's race winner Lando Norris and reigning F1 Champion Max Verstappen who finished P2.

Wolff credited Russell’s execution, saying: “The race itself was well-executed. We made the right decisions at the right time to claim our first podium of the season. George drove a flawless race, pushing when he needed to, managing his pace to capitalise on the podium and taking advantage of the opportunities when they presented themselves. A top performance and just underlines his speed, maturity and intelligence.”

Meanwhile, Kimi Antonelli made his Grand Prix debut in challenging conditions, starting out of position and battling through a tricky race to finish fourth, just behind his teammate: “For Kimi, he could not have asked for a more difficult task on his Grand Prix debut: starting out of position, facing extremely difficult conditions and, at times, a treacherous track."

"Kimi's speed when in free air was impressive, and his confidence and decisiveness when overtaking were superb. There will be challenging moments for him across the season, but we are pleased with the trajectory we are seeing from him already. P4 was a just reward,” Wolff explained.

With the Chinese Grand Prix marking round 2 of the 2025 F1 season, Wolff is looking forward to racing again at the Shanghai International Circuit after last year’s event saw Formula 1 return to the country for the first time since 2019: “We now head to Shanghai and look forward to returning to China after what was a remarkable Grand Prix last year.

"You could sense the passion and energy from the fans as F1 returned to the country for the first time in five years. As the world’s largest automotive market and one of the world’s biggest economies, China is crucial to the sport’s global footprint. I am sure this year will see another great event," predicts the Merc-boss

Shanghai will also play host to the first F1 Sprint race weekend of the season, following an eventful 2024 edition that saw more non-DRS-assisted overtakes than any other race on the calendar (25).

Mercedes holds strong memories at the 5.451km Shanghai International Circuit, having scored its first modern-era F1 win with Nico Rosberg in 2012.

The circuit, which has been fully resurfaced ahead of this year's event, will again test teams and drivers with its unique layout, featuring the long back straight leading into the tight Turn 14 hairpin—one of the sport’s most popular overtaking spots.