Mercedes AMG F1 team principal Toto Wolff, has fired warning shots to championship rivals Scuderia Ferrari stating “you drop the ball, we are there”. The statement comes on the back of an abysmal three-race run for Ferrari that has allowed the reigning constructors’ champions to claw their way back.
In the opening races of the 2022 season, Ferrari built up a commanding lead in the championship and positioned themselves as the team to beat. However, Red Bull fought back and now leads both championships while Ferrari tries to get a handle on their reliability issues and keep Mercedes at bay.
Ferrari’s power unit issues have been a big talking point post-Azerbaijan Grand Prix weekend where they failed to score any points following a double DNF (did not finish). It was the team’s first retirement due to reliability issues in 13 years.
That coupled with bad races in Spain, where Leclerc retired from the lead of the race and Monaco when Ferrari threw the win away with a pitstop blunder has placed Mercedes hot on their heels.
Team principal at Ferrari Mattia Binnotto stated; “As a team, we pushed a lot to develop the car during the winter, but we proved we are not yet fully reliable. There is still some work to be done. We didn’t get euphoric at the start of the season, we will not be deflated right now. The team will stay focused, work hard and make us stronger for the future.”
Wolff has admitted that he feels bad for the Scuderia as they have a super-powerful engine and good car. He reminded his rivals “You always need to be on your toes with reliability because you need to score points and not only be fast.”
As has been the case many times this season, Mercedes were able to capitalize on Ferrari’s misfortune and their drivers finished the Baku GP in 3rd and 4th place.
Wolff stated after the race “When your car is not super-competitive with the front guys, [it is about] maximizing those points. It is important to consolidate and make sure that you are no worse than third.”
Mercedes has suffered the most with porpoising (bouncing of the car) this season, which has hampered their speed. So much so that both Lewis Hamilton and teammate George Russell have often described the car as undrivable and dangerous.
Despite being classified as ‘best of the rest’ due to their inferior setup they have set the gold standard for reliability. They are the only team to have both their cars finish the first eight races.
They now sit 3rd in the constructors’ championship and trail Ferrari by 38 points. While in the drivers’ standing Russell is now only 17 points adrift Leclerc.
