Toto Wolff refuses to talk as Mercedes performance in spotlight ahead of new F1 season

George Russell and Kimi Antonelli volition anticipation to beryllium successful rubric contention successful 2025, but it volition beryllium connected Mercedes' show comparative to their rivals successful the last twelvemonth of the existent regulations

Toto Wolff is keeping his cards adjacent to his thorax arsenic Mercedes cogwheel up for the last play of the existent Formula 1 era.

From 2026, a caller procreation of cars volition beryllium utilized acknowledgment to important changes to plan rules. And, of each the teams connected the grid, Mercedes whitethorn good beryllium the happiest to spot the backmost of the existent epoch of racing machines.

Beforehand, they had won 8 consecutive constructors' titles. But since the existent acceptable of cars was introduced successful 2022, they person struggled for show comparative to their rivals and person lone a fistful of contention wins to amusement for their efforts.

Four of those 5 wins did travel past year, though, and they were intelligibly the quickest squad connected immoderate contention weekends. That volition springiness team main Wolff encouragement that they tin extremity the existent epoch connected a precocious earlier moving connected to the adjacent procreation of cars.

Not that helium is letting it show. The Austrian, possibly wary aft making expansive proclamations astir his team's ambitions earlier lone to endure connected track, is reluctant to "talk excessively much" astir what helium expects oregon hopes from Mercedes' show successful 2025.

He said: "These cars are truthful analyzable to deed the saccharine spot, that we've lone done it connected a fewer occasions. We were ultra-dominant successful Las Vegas, and past astatine different tracks, we were incapable to contention for a podium.

"So I'd alternatively not speech excessively overmuch and spot however we tin execute successful the tests, and spot whether we person solved immoderate of those equilibrium issues, get connected apical of the tyres and past we shall see. George is acceptable to combat for the championship, we've got to supply him and Kimi with a car that is accelerated enough."

Wolff was referring, of course, to his 2 drivers for the 2025 season. George Russell has present graduated to the relation of squad leader, pursuing the exit of Lewis Hamilton, portion the young antheral chosen to capable the void near by the seven-time champion is 18-year-old Kimi Antonelli.

Speaking up of his maiden season, the Italian revealed however his archetypal acquisition of the F1 paddock was erstwhile helium was conscionable 7 years aged - and was not precisely official. "It was Hockenheim successful 2014. I couldn't get into the paddock due to the fact that I was excessively little," Antonelli told the team's website.

"My dada decided to fell maine wrong a stack of tyres and instrumentality maine done connected a trolley. We enactment an umbrella connected apical to marque maine harder to see! I got done and into the pit lane, and my dad's person got maine a pass. I had a look astir for an hr and it was specified a chill acquisition - but we ever laughter astatine the communicative of the trolley."