Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff asserts his squad is not feeling a “sense of entitlement” to race at the forefront of the Formula 1 grid.
Since the start of the 2022 campaign, Mercedes has struggled for form after previously dominating the field for several years.
It spent the early stages of last season attempting to understand why its car was competing off the pace while also dealing with severe porpoising.
Although its speed gradually improved during the campaign, it was only able to take one race victory during the year.
After the first three races in 2023, it once again has failed to display race-winning pace but had its strongest showing last time out in Melbourne, where it claimed a double podium finish.
As it looks to recapture its form and return to the head of the field, Wolff denies that Mercedes feels entitled to be there after its long run of success in F1.
“It’s been difficult so far,” Wolff said, reflecting on the opening rounds of the 2023 season. “With the way we developed the car, we were hopeful of sorting out our issues from last year.
“And we realised we weren’t coming out of the blocks where we expected to be. Having said that, we don’t feel any sense of entitlement.
“This is the toughest competition in the world, and it wouldn’t be such a fantastic challenge, if it was easy.
“Three races into the season, I think we saw that one team is setting the benchmark now.
“In Australia though, we saw glimpses of performance in our car that encourages us for the next part of the season.”
Red Bull has been the class of the field so far this year, winning the three races that have been held.
Wolff added that Mercedes “need to have a steeper development curve” than Red Bull if it wishes to be competitive but asserts he has “trust in the process and in the people” while acknowledging that “there will be setbacks”.
The next rounds of the 2023 season will take place in Baku, Miami and Imola – with Wolff hopeful that upgrades will help turn its form around.
“Baku is a very different track,” he said. “It’s high speed on the straights and it’s always an entertaining race.
“Miami’s track layout is also a unique challenge. Going back there is fantastic with lots of marketing and partnership activities.
“And then obviously Imola, where we will start the first triple-header of the season.
“We will consistently be bringing upgrades to the car over the next few races, which is something to look forward to.
“But there is no such thing as a magic bullet that transforms the car, and it’s about being realistic with your expectations. Hopefully we will see a steady improvement.”
