"We have a race car more than a qualifying car" - Mercedes boss pleased with team's performance after 2022 F1 Spanish GP qualifying

After a difficult start to the 2022 F1 season for eight-time world champion Mercedes, the team finally saw an improvement in their car in Barcelona. Team principal Toto Wolff described the improvements as a "solid step," emphasizing that the car is finally ready to deliver on race day ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix.

As reported by Independent, in a post-qualifying media interaction, the German said the following:

“I think we have taken a solid step into Barcelona. You try to keep your expectations at a realistic point and I think where we slotted in today is somehow the best we could have expected. My belief is we have a race car more than a qualifying car, but we’re going to see tomorrow how it went for the others. I think with Red Bull, they always have the tendency of being much stronger in the race than the Ferraris.”

He further said:

“We know how to unlock more performance, but we’re not yet there. It’s step by step. The other teams have continued to develop their cars when we’ve been in a sort of pause moment to find out about the bouncing. So we can pick up the regular development as soon as we understand the tyres now the bouncing is gone. It’s [solving the bouncing] simple; it’s all an aerodynamic effect that creates from the floor swinging. It was difficult to come to that conclusion in a scientific way, but the team have found it and that’s great.”

Despite significantly lacking pace when compared to the likes of Red Bull and Ferrari, George Russell managed to outqualify Sergio Perez today, securing his best qualifying position with Mercedes in fourth, while Lewis Hamilton qualified sixth.

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Former F1 driver claims Spanish GP will determine whether Mercedes is in the title fight

Former racing driver and television presenter Karun Chandhok recently claimed that with the Mercedes W13 newly upgraded this weekend, the Spanish GP will be the team's final chance to remain in contention for the championship title.

As reported by SkySports, Chandhok said:

“I think this is a big weekend for them. If they want to get themselves into the championship fight for the rest of this season, they can’t really leave it much longer than this.”

Mercedes currently stands third in the Constructor Standings with a 56-point deficit to Red Bull.