Wolff: We managed to close the gap by half

Mercedes cars still lack speed and the team’s drivers can’t seriously claim to win races just yet, but leader Toto Wolff still sees a lot of positives in the situation as the gap with the leaders is gradually narrowing†

Q: Lewis Hamilton took the podium for the third time in a row, George Russell finished fourth – what would you say about the results of the race? Maybe you’re still upset that you’re still chasing Red Bull and Ferrari?
Toto Wolff: Yes, but we’re only a few tenths short – I think we’ve narrowed the gap by about half in the past few months. We already understand the causes better, but so far we have not managed to rise above the third and fourth place.

We can say that we are in no man’s land, because those behind us are clearly slower. But speaking of race pace, there are also positives: if Lewis had started from the top six, he probably could have gotten closer to Max Verstappen. But he started eighth.

Q: At the start of the weekend the pace of your car was a pleasant surprise and in qualifying we saw that Lewis was fastest in some sectors of the track, but we know how it all turned out. To what extent did the fact that you actually had to build a new car for him affect the speed?
Toto Wolff: Of course it had an effect. While you can try to fine-tune and tune the car, we were forced to fit two out of three bottoms, but this is still not quite the right approach. Of course the team did a great job, but in such a situation you are at a disadvantage initially.

We didn’t expect to be particularly fast in Austria, this is due to the nature of the track and in the past we had problems here, so the results suit me. We just have to continue to gradually narrow the gap with the leaders.

Q: To what extent are you satisfied that you were able to cope with the problem of the car construction?
Toto Wolff: The problem is not completely solved and if we had to race again in Monaco or Baku it might reappear, but there is progress.

Q: What expectations do you associate with the Paul Ricard stage?
Toto Wolff: We shouldn’t have any problems on the French circuit. There is level ground and Paul Ricard is somewhat similar to Silverstone, there are also fast corners and in theory we should be capable of good speeds.

Q: Half way through the season – what about the team’s mood?
Toto Wolff: Actually, the mood is not bad, because we see that we are starting to catch up, and that is important. Now we are in a situation that had been anticipated for a long time: after eight titles in a row, this winning streak should have been interrupted. But we want this break to be very short, we must not allow it to drag on.

Q: What can you say about the relationship between Lewis and George after everything that happened to your car, and taking into account the positions the team is in?
Toto Wolff: They have a great relationship, they understand that enemy number 1 is a machine that is not as effective as we would like. But everyone has the right mentality. While the rivalry between the riders can escalate as we let them fight each other, the most important thing is to always maintain a good relationship.

They’re just both good people. For example, I don’t hear at Ferrari that Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz let themselves be talked about badly, even though they have a very sharp rivalry on the track. In any case, not yet allowed, although they could already get into a fight. So our riders are good people and understand what we want to achieve together.