Toto Wolff, Mercedes Formula 1 boss, led the Mercedes during its hybrid era dominance in Formula 1.
He took his seat at Mercedes in 2013 and has been in the leading role since then. He responded to comments on Mercedes dominance and says it is not team’s fault. He also added that 2020 would require more efforts than just “a walk in the park”.
Like last year, Mercedes is dominating the start of the season with continual victories. Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas managed to win pole position and podiums.
Currently, the Brit is leading the score board with 63 points while the Fin is behind with 58 points. Red Bull team is second on constructors standing with Max Verstappen third on drivers standing with 33 points.
Wolff acknowledge that the team is promoting competition among its drivers while running different strategies. He added that short comings of its rivals can only be reduced by their efforts and not Mercedes’.
“If we would take the 2020 season for granted, as a walk in the park, and it’s basically just about picking up the trophy in Paris in December, we wouldn’t have won these [past] championships,” said the Austrian.
“There is not one fibre in us that thinks that this championship is done. It’s something that can really catch you out.
“On the other side, dominance from a single team, whether it is us, whether it is Red Bull in the 2010 years, or whether it was Ferrari in the early 2000s is something that is always a bit odd for the championship.
“But it is not up to the team that has made steps to be seen as responsible for the predictability of the championship.”
Wolff wanted the rival teams to bring the challenge to the sport and appreciated the improvements made by McLaren and Racing Point.
“We are very keen in racing against our fantastic competitors, we like to be out there fighting against Ferrari and Red Bull, we like the challenger brands like Racing Point to be part of the game, and on the other side McLaren and Renault need to find a way back to the front,” he said.
“I would wish for nothing more than a strong competition with an unknown outcome every Friday we start FP1, but it’s very difficult in our position to really change the pecking order at that stage.
“We have one key objective, and it is about finishing every weekend to the best of our abilities, hopefully score many points, and challenge for a championship. There is nothing else we can do.”
