Toto Wolff is ecstatic to see that Mercedes is ‘back in the game’ after the 1-2 finish at the Formula 1 Australian GP. However, the boss also preferred to be cautious and point out how close Ferrari is in the fight.
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During the first round of the year, George Russell and Charles Leclerc swapped positions for the lead of the pack numerous times at the start of the race. However, after a rather questionable decision by Ferrari not to pit their drivers during a VSC period, the Briton and Kimi Antonelli took the 1-2 and stayed there until the end.
Evaluating the return of competitiveness for the ‘Silver Arrows’ at the start of 2026, the Austrian executive pointed out how everyone within Mercedes is feeling a great deal of satisfaction.
“There is a lot of satisfaction in the team right now. We had a winning streak with those eight championships and then very difficult years, you know, we still won races and finished second in the championship, but a solid 1-2 where you feel you have a season ahead that means you can fight for a world championship, that hasn’t happened for a long time,” he said.
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“Above all, there is a certain degree of satisfaction that Mercedes is back,” he continued.
However, Wolff still sees Ferrari as a threat. “When it comes to Ferrari, I knew before the race, people were saying ‘you’re going to disappear at the front, looking at your race simulations’. And that wasn’t the case. We knew they were strong at the starts, and that’s what happened. It was an outright battle between Charles and George at the start. At one point, there was a three-way fight between two Ferraris and George, and eventually Kimi caught up with them. So, for me, the prevailing feeling now is that we have a battle ahead with Ferrari,” he added.
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