Whereas the German producer was buoyed by Lewis Hamilton taking the runner-up spot within the China dash final weekend, it nonetheless endured a difficult principal grand prix because it got here house behind McLaren and Ferrari once more.
However with there being no notable uptrend in its type regardless of the efforts it has made to higher perceive its W15, Wolff thinks that it has to raise its sport slightly than assume that glimmers of hope are the fact of the place it’s at.
Talking to ServusTV about his response to the Chinese language GP weekend, Wolff stated: “Not glad in any respect. Possibly a small spotlight with second place within the dash race, however the efficiency isn’t there.
“We are able to preserve telling ourselves that there have been brilliant spots on the weekend, however we now have to take a step.
“We’ll deliver a little bit of one thing to Miami, the place hopefully we are able to anticipate one thing. However right now you are simply behind the Ferraris and behind [Lando] Norris. Simply not ok.”
Mercedes has come into the yr upbeat concerning the progress it has made with its W15, and its early conclusion was the platform was robust however had some weaknesses in high-speed corners.
Nonetheless, as occasions have progressed, the staff has uncovered extra problems with the automobile, which makes it tough to search out the proper candy spot with the set-up.
Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes F1 W15, Kevin Magnussen, Haas VF-24, Zhou Guanyu, Kick Sauber C44
Picture by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images
As Wolff admitted in China, positive factors it has made with its high-speed traits have been confirmed in Japan, however this progress was on the expense of its tempo in different corners.
“I believe we completely achieved that, within the excessive pace we have been tremendous aggressive, additionally in Suzuka via the Esses, and it was day and night time in comparison with what we had earlier than,” stated Wolff.
“The drivers have been talking about it as one of the best automobile that they had within the final two-and-a-half years. Then we actually didn’t carry out within the low speeds.
“So that you acquire half a second within the excessive pace, however you lose half a second within the low pace. The equation is again to zero, so that’s one thing we have to enhance.
“We’re past the purpose of understanding and we simply want to enhance now. That’s what it must hop to, and we now have all of the information on the desk.
“We all know what we tweaked so as to resolve the high-speed, and we all know the place the automobile was earlier than to be fast within the low-speed. Now we simply have to bolt the automobile collectively that does each of them.”
Whereas Mercedes has failed to complete on the rostrum in a grand prix to this point this season, Wolff doesn’t assume this yr’s automobile is worse than its earlier floor impact equipment.
George Russell, Mercedes-AMG F1 Staff, Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes-AMG F1 Staff, wave on the crowds through the driver introduction
Picture by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images
As an alternative, he thinks his squad was maybe flattered earlier than when rivals like McLaren and Ferrari have been having their very own aggressive struggles.
“The benefit we had was McLaren was not racing us for the primary half of the season, in order that they weren’t a competitor,” he stated.
“Ferrari wasn’t as fast and dropped the ball on a number of events and that is why we have been a podium contender and closest to Purple Bull.
“Now these groups have picked up their efficiency ranges. This can be a relative sport and instantly, what was ok for third final yr is now [only] ok for sixth. That is why it’s robust.
“The automobile is as tough because it has been previously, tough for the drivers. George [Russell], after we mentioned it [on Saturday], stated it was the trickiest qualifying automobile he has had to this point. So total, in a means, the identical signs.”
Watch: F1 2024 Chinese language Grand Prix Evaluation – Verstappen dominates