Wolff sees an advantage for Mercedes: 'It's about 2026 then'
Red Bull Content Pool
F1 News
Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff has identified a positive should Mercedes finish the 2024 Formula 1 World Championship in fourth place. Wolff highlights how this result would help them for the 2026 season because they would have more wind tunnel than their rivals Red Bull, Ferrari and McLaren.
Mercedes struggled once again at the start of the 2024 Formula 1 season, but upgrades at the Canadian Grand Prix worked. Since then, Mercedes has won three races, and Lewis Hamilton ended his near 1,000-day win drought. Since the summer break, Mercedes has dropped off slightly. They achieved one podium in the last three races, but only because a late crash helped elevate Russell to third.
As it stands, Mercedes is firmly in fourth. McLaren and Red Bull are engaged in a duel for the title, while Ferrari is not far off themselves. Instead, Mercedes has a deficit of over 100 points to third-placed Ferrari, a gap that seems tough to close with just seven weekends remaining.
Wolff has hopes for 2026 with more wind tunnel time
"We cannot rest on three wins before the summer break. There are still seven races to go. For us, it's also about setting the direction for the development of the new car, because our performance next year will largely depend on that. And it's not like we're shouting, 'Hooray, hooray!' We are only fourth in the constructors' championship and have little hope of finishing third. However, this can also have advantages," team boss Wolff told OE24.
Wolff is referring to wind tunnel time. The team that wins the Constructors' World Championship receive less time than anyone else. Second, get less time than third, and so on. If Mercedes are to hang on to fourth place in the World Championship, they will get more wind tunnel time than their rivals. Crucially, much of the focus will be on the 2026 car when the new rules and regulations are introduced.
"By being fourth, we have more wind tunnel time, and that can help us tremendously in our development next year. It's about the year 2026," said the Austrian.
This article has been created in collaboration with Jeroen Immink
Want more Formula 1? Then follow GPblog on our various social media channels!