Toto Wolff hopes the Miami Grand Prix weekend will not be as difficult as the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix weekend for the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team.
George Russell may have salvaged a fourth-place finish at Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari, but team-mate Lewis Hamilton could not find a way into the points and was ultimately classified down in thirteenth position. It was also a weekend where neither Mercedes driver made it into Q3 in Qualifying for the first time since 2012.
Wolff, the Team Principal at Mercedes, says a lot of hard work has been done since the race at Imola, and they head stateside with confidence of a stronger weekend for team and drivers.
“It was a very difficult weekend for us in Imola,” said Wolff. “George did a great job to finish P4 from an unpromising starting position but with Lewis, we didn’t give him the tools or track position to show his true pace.
“Since we returned from Italy, we’ve learned as much from the weekend as we can and, in parallel, our learning has continued in the wind tunnel and simulations.
“We have found several directions for improving the car, and we will be conducting experiments in Miami to correlate those simulations, and hopefully confirm the development path for the coming races.”
Wolff has revealed that both Russell and Hamilton have been extremely active in Mercedes’ simulator ahead of the Miami Grand Prix, and he hopes the hard work they and the engineers have put in since Imola can pay off this weekend.
“Both drivers have been working in the simulator ahead of Miami and the factories have been busy producing updates for the next races,” Wolff added. “The saying ‘smooth seas do not make good sailors’ comes to mind.
“This team has shown its resilience over many years and the difficult start to this season has lit a fire within every team member, determined to put it right.”
Wolff says Miami will be an ‘exciting’ new challenge for everyone at Mercedes, but he is pleased the fanbase in the United States will see a second race in the country alongside the usual race at the Circuit of the Americas.
“Miami is an exciting new challenge and a complete step into the unknown,” he said. “The track looks demanding, with a real mix of low and high-speed corners, and it’s set to be a spectacular showcase for the sport to our growing US fanbase.
“So, we’re set for a fantastic event, and we can’t wait to see how it all plays out.”