Mercedes Formula 1 boss Toto Wolff has revealed his decision to extend his tenure as Team Principal was partly driven by the desire “to beat Red Bull with Lewis Hamilton”.
Mercedes obliterated the competition upon F1’s switch to V6 turbo-hybrid engines in 2014, storming to an unprecedented eight consecutive Constructors’ Championships.
However, the German marque has been unable to replicate that success since an overhaul to the regulations in 2022, logging only one victory across the last two seasons.
The root of Mercedes’ troubles last term could be traced back to retaining the ‘zeropod’ concept that it had developed at the beginning of the latest ground effect era, with the team misguided by securing a 1-2 race finish at the 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix.
Hamilton admitted that he was aware he wouldn’t be in a position to challenge for the 2023 title following his first outing with Mercedes’ W14 challenger, highlighting that changes he had touted hadn’t been adopted.
Despite the trials and tribulations endured over the previous two years, Hamilton, along with team-mate George Russell, signed new two-year deals through to the end of 2025.
Having also renewed terms to remain at the helm of Mercedes’ F1 operation for three further years, Wolff has outlined his burning desire to topple Red Bull with Hamilton, who has remained winless since December 2021.
“I’m staying at Mercedes to beat Red Bull with Lewis Hamilton,” Wolff told Italian publication La Gazzetta della Sport.
“Those who have driven in the simulator have told us that the 2024 car doesn’t look like the car of the last two years.
“If we give Hamilton a good car that he can rely on, he can get back in front of everyone.”
The demise of Mercedes has enabled Red Bull to take up the mantle of F1’s dominant force, with the Austrian outfit emerging victorious in 39 out of the last 44 races.
Although Hamilton has turned 39 ahead of the upcoming campaign, Wolff is certain the seven-time champion would deliver more success with title-contending machinery.
When questioned on whether Hamilton is capable of winning a record-breaking eighth F1 Drivers’ Championship, Wolff asserted: “The answer is clearly yes in capital letters.
“There is a reason Lewis is a seven-time world champion and has broken all the records… his ability is on a different level.
“If we are able to give him a car that he actually feels, that drives in a way that he can trust, he will be on the level that’s needed to win the championship. 39 is no age.”
Hamilton will be in attendance alongside Wolff and Russell at Silverstone on 14 February when Mercedes launch the W15, which will feature a revamped philosophy.
