Mercedes boss Toto Wolff on why catastrophic 2023 F1 Dutch GP results are 'bittersweet' for the team

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff called the decision to not pit in the opening laps of the 2023 F1 Dutch GP 'catastrophic' while labeling the overall result 'bittersweet'.

With George Russell starting from P3 and Lewis Hamilton from P13, Mercedes would have hoped for a decent chunk of points at the end of the race.

However, it all went wrong when they decided not to pit with the others for the intermediate tires and fell back in the race. Eventually, Hamilton came home to finish P6 with Russell finishing outside the points in P17.

Speaking with Sky F1, Wolff said:

“I think we stayed out catastrophically too long. We got it completely, completely wrong. And that’s annoying because the car had really pace (sic) and then, from there on, was just recovering as well as we could. I’d rather have a good pace, a fast race car, and a mediocre result, even if it hurts."

"We saw at the end, on the inter, George had Max Verstappen’s pace. And Lewis was very strong behind Sainz. He could have been much further ahead. But it’s still bittersweet because the result is just really bad. It’s what could have been but that doesn’t count in this sport.”

Mercedes team boss analyzes the Dutch GP performance

The Mercedes team principal stated that the team missed out on scoring some good points and claimed that they had a fast car throughout the entire race, a statement which was echoed by their drivers as well.

As per F1.com, Wolff promised to regroup and learn from the result, saying:

"In the final laps, George was unlucky to fall to the back after contact, while Lewis tried everything he could on Sainz but there was no way past. In the end, I’d rather we have a quick car and a bad result, than the other way round. It was an entertaining race for Formula One – and the kind of day when we should have been part of the action at the front."

"But if, but and maybe don’t count for anything in this sport. Now, we need to regroup, understand why we as a team got things wrong today, and go again in Monza next weekend."

Zandvoort was predicted to be a strong track for the Mercedes car as it was a high downforce track. It will be interesting to see how the team will tackle the different track characteristics of Monza next weekend.