F1 News: Toto Wolff Promises Big - "2026 We Will Be On Top"

The Team Boss insists that Mercedes must get back to basics.

In a big claim, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has claimed that Mercedes "will be on top" in 2026, after asserting that 2024 would give them a chance to revisit the basics and rectify the issues Lewis Hamilton has been complaining about. 

Mercedes started the current season on an optimistic note with the expectation that maybe, the winter development of the W14 might have closed the gap between it and Red Bull's RB19.

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Sadly though, even a race win seemed far-fetched for the Brackley outfit this season. To make matters worse, both its engine customers- McLaren and Aston Martin have achieved more podiums. 

With Hamilton's remark of his seat position being too forward in the W14's cockpit, Wolff claims that the team must get back to basics to avoid such complaints. He told the Italian publication La Gazzetta dello Sport: 

“We have to get back to basics.

"I don’t want to hear Lewis say anymore ‘My cockpit is too far forward’.”

Apart from getting back to basics, Wolff also added the team has an understanding of where it went wrong, particularly the failure of its zero-pod concept. The entire focus now would be to deliver a more compliant car. 

He added:

“We know what we understand and will not pay attention to what we do not understand.

"The biggest problem is that the drivers have no confidence in the car. We have to give them a solid foundation to score good points.”

Red Bull's dominance on the grid has been amplified by Max Verstappen's ruthless run toward his third championship title. With five more races to go, the points disparity between the world champion and teammate Sergio Perez rests at 209. 

Wolff continued:

“There is only one man at the moment who stands head and shoulders above the rest.

"Ferrari, Aston Martin, McLaren and us are all in the same situation.

"At least we are second in the Constructors’ Championship, because after all these years we have learned how to optimise our results.

"It’s just that no one comes close to Verstappen.”

Judging the current scenario and considering the current rate of development, Wolff is confident of overtaking Red Bull by 2026. He concluded:

“By 2026 we will be at the top again, but I wouldn’t be in this sport if I didn’t think it was possible to overtake Red Bull.

"If we can find three or four-tenths, then we are part of the fight again.”