"You oscillate from depression to exuberance"- Mercedes' Toto Wolff opens up about 'painful' and 'difficult' times during 2022 F1 season 

Mercedes got off to a rough start in 2022 with the introduction of the new regulations. This was a surprise for the team considering that it dominated F1 for eight consecutive years from 2014 with the beginning of the turbo-hybrid era.

Throughout testing and the first couple of races this season, the Silver Arrows struggled with issues relating to porpoising. This, in turn, cost them significant points and a shot at chasing their ninth consecutive world championship title this year.

Team boss Toto Wolff has now confessed that this has been a long and hard ride with an array of emotions. In an interview with Autosport, he said:

“The truth is, it’s just so painful and it’s so difficult to live by your values and your doubt. You oscillate from depression to exuberance, and then the next day the other way around. And in a way that when you kind of think nothing that you do works, [it is] a bit of Groundhog Day.”

“Then you make steps forward by looking at things and finding out they don’t function at all, and then you know what doesn’t go, and you go the other way and it functions. All the things I’ve preached, all the things that you read in books that it’s so hard, that it is so important to lose in order to thrive. It’s just lived in real life so far.”

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"We managed to turn around" - Mercedes boss on his team's comeback in 2022

Over the course of the first half of the season, Mercedes has managed to bounce back, having taken consecutive podium finishes in the last five races. The team is now quickly closing the gap to Ferrari in the constructors' standings, with a mere 30 points separating the two.

Speaking about the same to Autosport, Toto Wolff said:

“We managed to turn around. Some things are more trivial than you think. Other things were important to get on top of [such as] the porpoising, which we have none today. From an engineering standpoint, that was certainly valuable. But for all of us, from a human standpoint, professional human standpoint, it was very difficult to cope.”

“Because if the top engineers don’t really understand why the data are not correlating with reality that’s not easy. You’re lost. But it’s not the feeling of completely being lost. But you’re thinking, how long is this going to take to comprehend? Because we have a next season approaching. You’re like, ‘we need to get on top of this quickly, because next season’s car needs to get out of the blocks.’”

While the Silver Arrows continue to chase their first race win of the season, their progress within a short period of time has been quite unbelievable. The main focus, however, has now likely shifted to Mercedes' 2023 challenger.