Mercedes Boss Toto Wolff has been struggling to end his team’s win drought. In the current season, it has been all Red Bull who came out dominating so far. On the other hand, Mercedes had a tough fight against Aston Martin and Ferrari to be in second place. It took them some time, but finally, they have a more or less healthy lead in second place. But nothing would make them happier if they could finally win a race this year.
Last year, Mercedes won only in Brazil, with George Russell getting his maiden Grand Prix victory. However, Lewis Hamilton has been winless since the 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. To develop the W14 car into race-winning quality, Mercedes introduced several upgrades since the Monaco Grand Prix. They added side pods and front and floor suspensions in Monaco. Later they introduced a front wing to enhance the car around low-speed corners. However, these upgrades have not helped them end the win drought. After all these new developments, many experts, including a former F1 racer, feels Toto Wolff must have difficulty sleeping, thinking about how to get rid of this situation.
Hans-Joachim Stuck Says He Would Have Trouble Sleeping If He Was In Toto Wolff’s Place
In a recent interview with Eurosport, Hans-Joachim Stuck, former F1 driver of the 1970s, mentioned the resurgence of McLaren is bad news for Mercedes. Stuck raises the fear that McLaren has a good duo of drivers. They know where they are now and how far they can go to reach their goal. Moreover, Hans-Joachim Stuck compliments McLaren on reaching very close to their goal after 12 races this season already. There are ten more races to go.
It will become incredibly difficult for Mercedes to hold on to second place. Moreover, Stuck is of the opinion that there is no need to introduce new regulations to breach the gap between the Milton Keynes team and the rest of the grid. The former F1 driver feels the conditions are the same everywhere, and the teams have to make the best out of what they get. Stuck feels at present, only Red Bull is getting the best of the conditions. But Ferrari and Mercedes are just on their level.
Mercedes Facing More Challenges This Season
On the other hand, Red Bull had been enjoying dominance since the start of the season. In fact, they won the last season in a dominating style. Their car is already the most superior car in the grid. But to increase tensions in the Mercedes camp, there has been a resurgence of the McLaren team after copying designs of the Red Bull car.
For the last few races, McLaren’s Lando Norris has got the better of Lewis Hamilton. Hence, the chances of finishing on the podium are also looking dim for Mercedes. Moreover, the German team faced the threat of porpoising issues back in Belgium. Lewis Hamilton complained that the bouncing was back. However, many drivers faced porpoising issues in Spa. It might have been a lot to do with the track in Belgium.