Toto Wolff knows there is a Mount Everest to climb to beat Red Bull as they are banking on how others have improved throughout the season.
Mercedes’ Wolff knows there is a Mount Everest to climb to beat Red Bull after finishing second in the standings in F1 2023. They took the results to the chin and despite the opposition in place, they are looking forward to the competition.
“When you win on a day to secure P2, it reminds you that you lost P1,” said Wolff. “And I think we need to take it on the chin, be humble about it, and consider today as a good day. Nevertheless, you know there is a Mount Everest to climb in order to catch up with Red Bull.
“I have no doubt that McLaren is going to be right in the mix next year, maybe Aston Martin, maybe others. We must leave no stone unturned which is what we do in Brixworth and in Brackley. As tough as it is to be reminded that it’s just P2, it’s also a great, great opportunity to come back and drive for the stars,” summed up Wolff.
The Austrian knows when Red Bull started with these regulation, they had the advantage and will have it for some time too. But Wolff is taking inspiration from the likes of McLaren and Aston Martin, who made the jump from previous years to this.
“Red Bull started into these regulations in 2022 with a massive advantage and was able to maintain it,” continued Wolff. “We have respect for… you’ve got to have a lot of respect for their achievement, from the engineering side and the driver. Beating them under the current regulations is against the odds, that’s clear.
“At the same time, we’ve seen with McLaren who had an update and unlocked a second of lap time. AlphaTauri coming strong at the end and Aston Martin over the winter. There is a key to unlock dramatically more performance and I think us assessing it in an honest way that this car is never got to be good enough to fight for the championship.
“We’ve taken the decision in spring that we’ve got to go back to the drawing board and come up with something new next year. But Mount Everest is in front of us,” summed up Wolff.
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