"We are making very big steps in our R&D": Toto Wolff confident Mercedes can make swift progress towards the front

Toto Wolff believes Mercedes have made steps forward in their car development and are able to understand their car better. The Austrian feels they are definitely not in a position to fight for the championship at this stage. He claimed, however, that their progress has been encouraging enough to hope for wins in the future.

Speaking to media including Sportskeeda at the Saudi Arabian GP weekend, Wolff said:

“We are making really big steps in our R&D and with our understanding in the tunnel. That is really big steps, because we just needed to have the confirmation in Bahrain that we got it wrong. Now we have that, that’s why we would never right off anything."

He added:

"Now it realistic with today’s performance to even talk about the world championship? No it’s not. You’re a fool if we are equal. But that’s motor racing and you must never give up. But if we continue to make the big steps that we’ve already done in the last ten days, then we have come to the stage where we can race for wins.”

Toto Wolff explained that Mercedes have been able to understand their car better and have made a step forward in terms of development. But the Austrian believes that the steps taken in the R&D and aero development have given them hope for potential wins in the future.

According to the Mercedes Executive director, Bahrain GP was a confirmation that they needed to improvise and develop the package they had.

Explaining the gains made at the factory, Wolff said:

“It is big steps in relative performance to where we are even now. The kind of gains that are coming in, in our R&D and in aero, are much bigger than we've had over a long time. So we've unlocked some potential because we are simply look at things from different angles now."

He added:

"We have a different perspective, because of our learnings of the Bahrain test and race. There was no step back. On the contrary, there was immediately two steps forward.”

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Mercedes believe they have a better understanding of what to improve on their car

Wolff feels Mercedes have been able to understand the correct ride height of their car to be able to optimise its best performance. He claimed that last year, they were running a low rise height whereas this year they started out with a slightly higher ride height on their car. The Austrian believes that the answer to obtaining the perfect setup lies somewhere between the two ride heights.

Explaining his optimism with the aerodynamic understanding of their package, Wolff said:

“I think the biggest change that we made is actually looking at whether we want to have the car set-up in its sweet spot. We've been too low last year, and we've been too high this year. And now we believe we know what to land on."

He added:

"On the other side, then obviously, everything else follows in terms of floor, and bodywork that you want to achieve. So I don't want to sound too foolishly optimistic, but at least we see low hanging fruit with things that are encouraging.”

Asked about car concepts in the aerodynamic era and the key design element residing within the floor of the car, the Mercedes team principal explained:

“It is all the aerodynamic surfaces that are visible, from the leading edge all the way to the diffuser and the beam wing. There's massive amounts on the floor, obviously with a ground-effect car, and then there's many more architectural things that are necessary in order to do things more efficient. So it's literally the car is being turned upside down at the moment and there's a lot of goodness that we see.”

The narrative surrounding the Mercedes W14 has evolved around the side pods. However, the new F1 cars have most of their potential unlocked from the floor of the car.

According to Wolff, it appears that they have finally been able to understand the approach and direction to take in the development of their car. Their latest understanding of the car has also given them the relief that they might not be as far off in terms of performance as they looked in Bahrain.